Gujarat’s sea-going fishermen can now claim half the cost of a new fishing net — up to ₹4 lakh — under a state scheme running through 2026-27. The assistance covers trawler, dolnetter and gillnetter boats, and it also pays for hook-and-line gear and the ropes, floats and sinkers that go with a net. But there is a catch that has already tripped up applicants in other states: you must get the district officer’s in-principle approval before you buy the net. Buy first, and the subsidy is gone.
The scheme comes from a Government Resolution (GR) issued by Gujarat’s Agriculture, Farmers Welfare & Co-operation Department on 1 April 2026 (Wednesday), and it is a new item in the state’s 2026-27 budget. Applications run entirely on the i-Khedut portal, and the money reaches the beneficiary’s bank account by direct benefit transfer (DBT). This post explains exactly what you get, who qualifies, the two conditions that can disqualify you, and the step-by-step application process — all checked against the GR itself.
The scheme at a glance
| Detail | What the GR says |
|---|---|
| Scheme | 50% assistance on fishing nets and hook & line for trawler, dolnetter and gillnetter boats, Gujarat |
| Issued by | Agriculture, Farmers Welfare & Co-operation Department, Government of Gujarat |
| GR number | ACD/BUM/e-file/2/2026/0061/T; Letter No. ACD/0040/04/2026 |
| Approved on | 1 April 2026 (Wednesday) |
| Assistance | 50% of the cost, up to ₹4,00,000 |
| Unit cost fixed by the GR | ₹8,00,000 per boat |
| Who it covers | Owners of sea-going trawler, dolnetter and gillnetter inboard-motor (IBM) boats |
| Repeat benefit | Only after two years from the last benefit |
| Where to apply | i-Khedut portal (ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in) |
| Payment | Direct benefit transfer (DBT) to the beneficiary’s bank account |
| Budget head | 06-2405-00-103-01 (new item, 2026-27 budget) |
What you actually get: ₹4 lakh is the ceiling, not the default
The GR fixes the unit cost at ₹8 lakh per boat and pays 50% of the actual cost or ₹4 lakh, whichever is lower. That last phrase matters — the subsidy follows your real bill, not the ceiling. Worked out, it looks like this:
| What you spend on nets / hook & line | 50% of your spend | What you receive |
|---|---|---|
| ₹8,00,000 | ₹4,00,000 | ₹4,00,000 (the maximum) |
| ₹5,00,000 | ₹2,50,000 | ₹2,50,000 |
| ₹3,00,000 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹1,50,000 |
| ₹10,00,000 | ₹5,00,000 | ₹4,00,000 (capped at the ceiling) |
So a fisherman who spends ₹5 lakh on a new trawl net gets ₹2.5 lakh back — not ₹4 lakh. And spending more than ₹8 lakh does not raise the payout above ₹4 lakh. Keep your GST bill safe: the bill must show the net’s size, weight and mesh size, and the district officer physically verifies the purchase before recommending the payment.
Who can apply
- Boat type: you must own a sea-going trawler, dolnetter or gillnetter IBM (inboard-motor) boat that fishes at sea. Inland boats and other craft are not covered by this GR.
- Residence: you must be a resident of Gujarat.
- Registration: your boat must be registered on ReAL Craft, the national fishing-vessel registration portal.
- Licence: you must hold a valid fishing licence for the boat.
- Cooling-off: if you have already taken this benefit once, you can apply again only after two years.
The GR’s own introduction explains the scale of the fleet this is aimed at: Gujarat has about 9,626 trawler boats, about 2,600 dolnetter boats and about 5,600 gillnetter IBM boats in operation. That is roughly 17,800 boats whose owners buy nets every year. For scale, the Union government told the Lok Sabha on 11 February 2026 that Gujarat has 18,559 mechanised fishing vessels — the second-highest of any state, after Maharashtra’s 20,062, out of 64,414 mechanised vessels across India. (The two counts use different bases — IBM boats in the GR versus all mechanised vessels in the Lok Sabha answer — so they are close but not identical.)
What exactly is covered
- Fishing nets — trawl nets, dol nets and gill nets.
- Net accessories — head rope, foot rope, floats, sinkers and similar fittings.
- Hook & line gear and its accessories.
The GR is explicit that the money is for the gear itself, bought in the open market by the fisherman. There is no approved-vendor list in the GR: you choose the seller, but you must produce a GST bill, and the district officer inspects the gear and takes a geo-tagged photograph of you with it before the file moves up for sanction.
Two conditions that can disqualify you
Most subsidy schemes have fine print. This one has two conditions that are easy to miss and impossible to fix afterwards.
1. Get approval BEFORE you buy — never after
Condition 5 of the GR is blunt: before buying the net or hook-and-line gear, you must obtain in-principle approval from the district officer. You apply on i-Khedut, the district officer checks your documents and gives the in-principle approval, and only then do you buy. If you buy first and apply later, the sequence in the GR has not been followed — and the file can be rejected. This is the single most important rule in the whole scheme.
2. A trawl net must carry a Turtle Excluder Device — and the old net must go
Condition 12 requires that a trawl net carry a Turtle Excluder Device (TED) in the codend, and that the net’s size follows the mesh-size rules in Section 6(4) of the Gujarat Fisheries Act, 2003. The GR’s introduction also says the scheme is meant to help enforce legal provisions including TED use and a 40 mm codend mesh. Condition 13 adds that you must give an undertaking to dispose of your old net in a scientific manner, under Sections 7(32) and 7(33) of the same Act, and the district officer verifies it.
That second rule is not paperwork for its own sake. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimates about 640,000 tonnes of fishing gear are lost at sea every year — roughly a tenth of all ocean waste — and abandoned nets keep fishing on their own, a problem called ghost fishing. Gujarat’s rule pushes the old net toward proper disposal instead of the sea. If you want to see what the alternative looks like, France has just put the first biodegradable trawl net through sea trials off Brittany — a reminder that the net itself is now part of the sustainability conversation, not just a cost.
How to apply: six steps
- Apply on i-Khedut. The entire process — from application to payment — runs on the i-Khedut portal (ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in). Applying is free; never pay anyone who offers to apply for you.
- Keep your papers ready. Boat registration on ReAL Craft, a valid fishing licence, and the undertaking to dispose of the old net scientifically.
- Get in-principle approval first. The district officer verifies your documents on the portal and issues the in-principle approval. Do not buy anything before this step.
- Buy in the open market. Purchase the net or hook-and-line gear and take a GST bill that clearly mentions the net’s size, weight and mesh size.
- Get the purchase verified. Submit the GST bill to the district officer, who physically inspects the gear, takes a geo-tagged photograph of you with it, and sends the file with a recommendation to the divisional head. The divisional head sanctions the assistance — and cross-checks 10% of the purchases itself.
- Receive the money by DBT. The assistance is credited directly to your bank account. The GR also requires you to keep entering your catch data regularly online in the token software.
Why Gujarat is doing this now
The GR’s introduction is unusually frank about the problem. A boat needs, on average, about ₹8 lakh worth of nets, and nets are damaged every season — the GR points to physical friction and wear against the sea bottom as the main cause. Every year, boat owners must spend a large sum just to keep fishing. Old or damaged nets also catch less and, when they are lost, become ghost gear. By paying half the replacement cost, the state is trying to get stronger, better-quality nets onto boats and the legal requirements — TEDs, codend mesh sizes, proper disposal — enforced at the same time.
It is also worth knowing how this fits with the other help available to the same boat owner. The comparison below is drawn from official sources already verified on this site:
| Scheme | What it pays for | How much | Who runs it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gujarat net & hook-line (2026-27) | New fishing nets, accessories, hook & line | 50%, up to ₹4 lakh, once in 2 years | Govt of Gujarat, via i-Khedut |
| Odisha MMKY boat kit | New boat + engine + safety gear + net | Up to ₹6 lakh (40% general, 60% women/SC/ST/PWD/transgender) | Govt of Odisha, via Go-Sugam; apply preferably by December 2026 |
| PMMSY deep-sea fishing vessels | Acquisition of deep-sea fishing vessels | 40% general, 60% SC/ST/women | Department of Fisheries, Govt of India |
The Gujarat scheme is the only one of the three that pays for nets alone — the Odisha kit bundles the net with a boat and engine, and PMMSY’s vessel support is for the boat itself. A Gujarat trawler owner who already has a boat but needs a new net is exactly who this GR is written for. Readers planning a new boat as well should read our guide to Odisha’s ₹6 lakh boat kit and the free EEZ Access Pass for deep-sea fishing, and students revising gear types will find our 20 fishing crafts and gears MCQs useful — dol nets, gill nets and trawls included.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a last date to apply?
The GR does not print a closing date. The scheme is a 2026-27 item and the scheme page lists applications on i-Khedut in 2026-27, so apply during this financial year — and confirm the live window on the i-Khedut portal before you spend anything, because district targets and portal windows are fixed year by year.
Can I buy the net first and claim later?
No. The GR requires in-principle approval from the district officer before purchase. Buy after approval, not before.
Does the scheme cover inland boats or FRP boats?
No. It covers only sea-going trawler, dolnetter and gillnetter IBM boats. The boat must be registered on ReAL Craft and hold a valid fishing licence.
What if my net costs less than ₹8 lakh?
You get 50% of your actual cost. A ₹3 lakh net earns ₹1.5 lakh of assistance; the ₹4 lakh figure is only reached at ₹8 lakh of spending.
Can I apply again next year?
Not immediately. The GR allows the benefit again only after two years from the last benefit.
Do I need a Turtle Excluder Device?
Yes, if you are buying a trawl net — a TED in the codend is mandatory under the GR, and the net must meet the mesh-size rules of the Gujarat Fisheries Act, 2003.
What we do not know yet
Honest gaps, stated plainly. The GR does not publish a total budget allocation for this component — only the budget head (06-2405-00-103-01) — so no total outlay or number of beneficiaries is claimed here. It does not print a closing date, so none is claimed; the scheme runs in 2026-27 and readers should confirm the live window on i-Khedut. The GR also does not say whether this assistance can be combined with other schemes — the scheme page notes the documents are silent on combining, so ask the implementing office before counting on both. And the fleet figures in the GR introduction (about 9,626 trawlers, 2,600 dolnetters, 5,600 gillnetters) are marked “approximately” in the GR itself, so treat them as the department’s working estimates.
Fact-check note: every date, figure and condition in this post was checked on 13 November 2026 against the Gujarat Government Resolution ACD/BUM/e-file/2/2026/0061/T (Letter No. ACD/0040/04/2026, approved 1 April 2026), read in full, and against the scheme summary on kisansubsidy.com, which quotes the GR clause by clause. Fleet totals are from the Lok Sabha answer of 11 February 2026 (Question 1324, PIB release PRID 2226346). The ghost-gear figure is from the FAO, as cited in our earlier reporting. The GR is written in Gujarati; the terms quoted here follow the GR’s own conditions, numbered as in the original.
Sources: Government of Gujarat GR ACD/BUM/e-file/2/2026/0061/T (1 April 2026) — full text; kisansubsidy.com scheme page “Fishing net & hook-line 50% (sea boats)” (GR quoted clause by clause); i-Khedut portal, ikhedut.gujarat.gov.in; Lok Sabha Unstarred Question 1324, answered 11 February 2026 (PIB PRID 2226346); PIB release PRID 2244314 (24 March 2026, PMMSY deep-sea fishing vessel subsidy).
Note: the images in this post are illustrations, not photographs of the scheme’s beneficiaries or of any specific net supplied under it.