Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Purushottam Rupala said in Anand on Friday that the marine fish should be considered as the sister of Goddess Lakshmi.
“We know very little about the fisheries sector and people have not taken (much) interest in it. But you should be aware that the ocean is the ancestral home of Goddess Lakshmi. She is the daughter of the ocean. I am mentioning this because just as Goddess Lakshmi is the daughter of the ocean, similarly the fish is also the daughter of the ocean. So in a way it (fish) is considered to be the sister of Goddess Lakshmi. If you seek the blessings of Goddess Lakshmi (who symbolizes wealth), you should also seek the blessings of her sister. God has once appeared in the form of Matsya, or fish,” the Union Minister said while encouraging people to take up animal husbandry and fisheries. He was speaking at Atmanirbhar village in Wadala Travel Program organized by the State Government to implement the development of local infrastructure in the village and rural areas.
Rupala also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi Has extended the benefits of Kisan Credit Card (KCC), in which farmers in the state pay zero percent interest on loans up to Rs 3 lakh to fishermen and those involved in animal husbandry.
The minister gave a token KCC card to a fisherman who was fishing in a government-owned reservoir. “They have not started prawn farming yet. If he does so, he will turn from borrower to loan provider,” said Rupala, adding that the Gujarat government has started giving KCC to people involved in animal husbandry and fisheries. “We would request the state government to give a similar relief of four per cent in interest rates, which it is currently giving to agriculturists holding KCCs,” he said.
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