New Delhi, April 3 : The government on Friday said that India's fisheries sector has grown into a significant contributor to food security, employment and export earnings, backed by a record investment of Rs 39,272 crore since 2015.

According to the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, the sector supports nearly 30 million fishers and fish farmers at the primary level and almost twice as many across the value chain.

India is now the second-largest aquaculture producer globally, accounting for roughly 8 per cent of world fish output, it said.

Moreover, domestic fish production rose from 141.64 lakh tonnes in 2019-20 to 197.75 lakh tonnes in 2024-25 -- an average annual growth of around 7 per cent.

Seafood exports have more than doubled over the past decade, climbing from Rs 30,213 crore in 2013-14 to Rs 62,408 crore in 2024-25, driven largely by shrimp exports valued at Rs 43,334 crore.

India now ships over 350 varieties of seafood products to nearly 130 global markets, with the United States accounting for 36.42 per cent of total export value in 2024-25, followed by China, the European Union, Southeast Asia, Japan and the Middle East.

The share of value-added products in the export basket has risen from 2.5 per cent to 11 per cent, amounting to $742 million.

Meanwhile, to reduce dependence on a few commodities, the government is promoting high-value species such as tuna, seabass, cobia, mud crab, tiger shrimp and seaweed under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), alongside investments in cold-chain networks, modern fishing harbours and digital traceability systems.

India secured a comparability finding from US authorities in 2025 under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, ensuring uninterrupted seafood exports to its largest market.

The government stated that large-scale deployment of Turtle Excluder Devices on shrimp trawlers is also progressing across coastal states.

On the regulatory front, the Sanitary Import Permit system has been fully digitised and integrated with the National Single Window System, cutting approval time from 30 days to 72 hours.

Over the next five years, the government aims to expand value-added exports, build inland export hubs and deepen India's presence in markets including the UK, EU, ASEAN and West Asia.

/IANS