(Re)in Summary
- Private insurers are being onboarded to India’s PM-MKSSY aquaculture insurance scheme, which is currently served by Oriental Insurance, Agriculture Insurance Company, New India Assurance and United India Insurance.
- The programme offers eligible farmers a one-time subsidy of up to 40% of premium costs for one crop cycle, subject to limits based on farm size and production system.
- Cover is available for shrimp, prawn, freshwater fish and cold-water species, addressing losses from disease, flooding, cyclones and other specified perils.
- India produced 19.8m tonnes of fish in 2024-25, with aquaculture accounting for more than 74% of output, while the scheme aims to facilitate cover for at least 100,000 hectares of farms.
Private insurers are being onboarded to India’s government-backed aquaculture insurance programme, opening a line of business that has so far been served exclusively by state-owned insurers, the government announced.
Four public-sector insurers—Oriental Insurance Company, Agriculture Insurance Company, New India Assurance and United India Insurance—are currently offering cover under the national aquaculture farmers support scheme – Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY), according to a Press Information Bureau announcement.
The government is in the process of onboarding private insurers to strengthen the aquaculture insurance ecosystem, though it did not provide further details.
The scheme provides a one-time incentive to aquaculture farmers buying insurance for one crop cycle. Eligible farmers can receive support equivalent to up to 40% of their premium, capped at ₹25,000 (US$260) per hectare and ₹100,000 (US$1,041) for up to four hectares of pond-based aquaculture.
The same 40% premium support is available for intensive systems including cage culture, recirculatory aquaculture systems, biofloc and raceways, subject to a ₹100,000 cap. Marginalised communities and women beneficiaries can receive an additional incentive equal to 10%.
Coverage is available for shrimp and prawn, freshwater fish and cold-water species. The release said farmers face recurring losses from disease, flooding, cyclones, pollution, earthquakes and other natural perils.
Claims are intended to be completed within 30 days for shrimp cultivation and 45 days for other aquaculture activities, after the insurer appoints a loss assessor and evaluates supporting documents.
According to government data, India produced a record 19.8m tonnes of fish in 2024-25, making it the world’s second-largest producer. Aquaculture accounted for more than 74% of output, but only about 17% of its 1.41m hectares of brackish-water area has been developed.
The PM-MKSSY scheme, approved in February 2024, is a ₹60bn central-government programme running from the 2023-24 to 2026-27 financial years. Its aquaculture-insurance component is intended to facilitate the development of insurance products and cover at least 100,000 hectares of aquaculture farms during the programme period.
Take-up remains at an early stage. The government said it had received 316 applications for the one-time insurance incentive, covering 730.61 hectares. Of those, 127 applications covering 321.74 hectares had been approved and disbursed, with total payments of ₹4m.
