The Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying is implementing two major initiatives for fisheries development. The Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) is a flagship scheme with an investment of Rs 20,050 crore across all States and Union Territories, while the Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF) has a fund size of Rs 7,522.48 crore effective from financial year 2018-19.
For cold water fisheries specifically, the government has approved various fisheries developmental projects worth Rs 706 crore for Himalayan and Hilly States. On 14th March 2026, the department issued Model Guidelines for the Development of Cold Water Fisheries to support states in developing coldwater fisheries infrastructure. These guidelines provide specifications for Raceways, Re-circulatory Aquaculture Systems (RAS), hatcheries, feed mills, disease prevention and market linkages for commercially important coldwater fish species including Rainbow Trout, Golden Mahseer and Snow Trout.
Four clusters have been specifically notified for cold water fisheries development: Anant Nag District in Jammu and Kashmir, Pithoragarh District in Uttarakhand, Kargil District in Ladakh, and Kullu District in Himachal Pradesh. The department promotes adoption of emerging technologies such as RAS, Biofloc, Cages, IoT-based water quality monitoring, GIS mapping, automated feeders and digital market platforms for fish farmers in remote and mountainous regions.
Under PMMSY, a model RAS for coldwater fisheries has been developed through ICAR-Central Institute of Coldwater Fisheries Research (ICAR-CICFR), Bhimtal for intensive trout production and year-round breeding of Golden Mahseer. Additionally, ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) Kochi has supported fish processing and Ready-to-Eat facilities in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.