Lok Sabha Question No. 456 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-02
Subject: Seaweed Parks
Ministry: FISHERIES, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND DAIRYING
Asked by: Smt. Kanimozhi Karunanidhi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FISHERIES, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND DAIRYING DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 456 TO BE ANSWERED ON 2 nd  DECEMBER, 2025

## Seaweed Parks

## 456. Smt. Kanimozhi Karunanidhi:

Will  the  Minister  of  FISHERIES,  ANIMAL  HUSBANDRY  AND  DAIRYING  be  pleased  to State:

- (a)  the  details  of  seaweed  parks  established or proposed under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) in the country, State-wise including Tamil Nadu;
- (b)  the  current  status  and  expected  timeline  for  the  commencement  of  work  on  the proposed Seaweed Park under the PMMSY in Thoothukudi district;
- (c) the details regarding the number of people from Thoothukudi district who have been trained or engaged in pilot-scale seaweed cultivation initiatives;
- (d)  whether  the  Government  has  formulated  any  plans  to  mitigate  environmental concerns arising from the cultivation of invasive seaweed species such as Kappaphycus alvarezii in ecologically sensitive areas and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e)  the  steps  taken  by  the  Government to  bridge  the  gap  between  current  levels  of seaweed production and the industrial demand for seaweed based raw materials?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF FISHERIES, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND DAIRYING (SHRI RAJIV RANJAN SINGH ALIAS LALAN SINGH)

(a)  and  (b):    The  Department  of  Fisheries,  Government  of  India  is  implementing  a flagship scheme ' Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)' with effect from FY 2020-21 with an investment of ₹20,050 crore  in all States and Union Territories including Tamil Nadu. In Tamil Nadu state, "Establishment of Multipurpose Seaweed Park" has been sanctioned under the PMMSY at a total project cost of Rs. 127.71 crore, with following components: (i) Seaweed multiplication in Hub - I Centre at Valamavur in Ramanathapuram District, (ii) Seaweed processing and value addition in Hub - II Centre at Manganur in Pudukottai District, (iii) Spoke level infrastructures in seaweed farming villages of Thoothukudi, Ramanathapuram,  Pudukottai  and  Thanjavur  Districts. Government of Tamil Nadu has informed that the civil works for Hub-I, Hub-II and Spoke level infrastructures have already been commenced and target dates for completion of Hub -I Centre is January 2026, and for Hub - II Centre is July 2026. In Thoothukudi District, Spoke level infrastructure works are being undertaken in the following villages: viz.  Periasamipuram,  Sippikulam,  Pattinamaruthur,  Vellapatti,  Thoothukudi  Harbour, Mullakadu with an aim to complete the works by December, 2025.

- (c): Government of Tamil Nadu has informed that 125 fisherwomen have been trained on seaweed value addition in Thoothukudi district under 'Special livelihood programme for  Palk-bay  and  Gulf  of  Mannar  Fishermen'.  The  ICAR-Central  Marine  Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) has informed that 159 training programmes on seaweed cultivation were conducted for over 13,500 coastal communities during last five years including  over  300  beneficiaries  from  Thoothukudi  district  of  Tamil  Nadu  State.  The CSIR- Central Salt and Marine Chemicals Research Institute (CSMCRI) has trained more than 50 fishers of Thoothukudi district. (d):  ICAR-CMFRI  has  promoted  cultivation  of  seaweed  (red  algae)  species viz. , Gracilaria  edulis and Kappaphycus alvarezii under  the  PMMSY.  As  per  the  studies conducted  by  R&D  Institutions  such  as  National  Centre  for  Sustainable  Coastal Management (NCSCM); CSMCRI and CMFRI, Kappaphycus spp . is not found to be an invasive species and it has been reported that occurrence of this seaweed did not harm the natural coral ecosystem. The Government of Tamil Nadu has also inter alia reported that commercial cultivation of Kappaphycus was started from 2005, and there was no massive invasiveness seen as apprehended. However, as a precautionary measure, vide G.O. (MS) No.229, Environment and Forests (EC-3) Department, dated 20.12.2005 the Kappaphycus was not allowed for cultivation in Gulf of Mannar region. (e):  The Department of Fisheries, along with the other Ministries/Departments  in the Union Government and with active support of the coastal States/UTs have taken several steps to bridge the gap between current production and demand for seaweeds, such as 'Establishment  of  Multipurpose  Seaweed  Park'  in  Tamil  Nadu,  providing  virulent seaweed seeds to farmers, identification of suitable sites for seaweed cultivation along the  11,099  km  of  coastline,  support  to  R&D  institutions  and  entrepreneurs  for  pilot projects for feasibility  studies,  training  and  capacity  development, support to coastal communities/beneficiaries for installation of Rafts and monolines/tubenets for seaweed cultivation, etc.  Under the PMMSY, during last 5 years (2020-25) the projects worth ₹195 crore have been approved towards seaweed cultivation and its related activities. The Research Institutions have identified 384 sites covering 24,707 hectares across the coastline of India, as suitable for seaweed cultivation. Furthermore, Lakshadweep has been notified as a Seaweed Cluster, and the Mandapam Regional Centre of the ICARCMFRI has been notified as the Centre of Excellence for promoting seaweed farming and research activities. The ' Guidelines for Import of Live Seaweeds into India '  have been issued on 21-10-2024. Besides, NITI Aayog has released a report titled ' Strategy for the development of Seaweed Value Chain ' to promote seaweed cultivation in India. An Institutional mechanism has been established by the DoF, GoI in the form of an InterMinisterial Committee (IMC) and the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) on Seaweed Development for coordinated development of this important sector in the country. As a result of these initiatives, the seaweed production has increased from 18,890 tonnes in 2015 to 74,083 tonnes in 2024.

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