SHILLONG: Meghalaya Government is trying to go after the people who are involved in the fish-formalin racket which forced the Government to impose a fifteen-day ban on importing of fish to the state.
Fisheries Minister Comingone Ymbon on Friday said that the Government was trying to find out the people who were involved in the fish formalin racket. The Minister has directed his officers to track down the people involved in injecting formalin into the fish.
According to the Fisheries Minister, the fish suppliers from Andhra Pradesh had denied that they were involved in injecting of formalin into the fish while hoping that the government be able to crack down this racket.
He, however, said that it would be a difficult job for the officers since the people who are involved in the fish business were not maintaining proper records of their transactions.
Ymbon also informed that he was going to hold a review a meeting before lifting of the ban on the sale of imported fish adding that the department is also continuing with the exercise to conduct the test even on the locally produce fish and all the tests which was conducted so far were negative.
Meanwhile, the Government is contemplating to launch the phase II of the Meghalaya Aquaculture Mission during the current year.
“In these five years, they have issued a total number of 25,000 plus form for construction of fish ponds. Out of which, only 17, 000 plus fish ponds have been constructed. There are few where the construction is still going on,” Ymbon said.
When asked why there were only 17,000 plus have been constructed, he said that as per the Government scheme, 60 % is a subsidy, 25 percent is a loan from the banks and 15 percent is a contribution of the fish farmers.
“Despite 25,000 forms were issued, the banks had given approval only to those fish farmers who are were able to meet the laid down criteria,” Fisheries Minister said.