Trout Farmers Meet Union Fisheries Chief in Munsyari Cluster Review

Prelims-testable facts

• 01Dr. Abhilaksh Likhi, Union Secretary, Department of Fisheries, visited Munsyari Coldwater Fisheries Cluster in Uttarakhand on 18 October 2026.
• 02The Government of India has notified 34 fisheries clusters across the country, including Pithoragarh as a Cold Water Fisheries Cluster under PMMSY.
• 03Uttarakhand has emerged as a hub for rainbow trout culture, transforming subsistence farming into a semi-commercial enterprise.
• 04The Department of Fisheries, Government of Uttarakhand, is exporting trout to Nepal and supplying trout to the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) under an MoU.
• 05India's coldwater fisheries are concentrated in six hilly states and UTs — Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh.
• 06Trout production has grown six-fold in the last decade, reaching nearly 5,000 MT annually, with Uttarakhand achieving its first international export to Nepal in June 2026.
• 07The Government of India has invested over ₹2,299 crore in coldwater regions, supporting raceways, hatcheries, feed mills, cold storages, and post-harvest infrastructure under PMMSY.

Trap alerts

• Most people think that trout farming is only done in freshwater lakes, but actually it can also be done in coldwater streams and rivers like in the Himalayan region.
• Most people think that trout farming is a new initiative, but actually it has been going on for several decades in India, particularly in the Himalayan states.
• Most people think that trout farming is only done for domestic consumption, but actually it has significant export potential, with India exporting trout to countries like Nepal.