KSCADC gets New Headquarters Complex in State Capital

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Minister for Fisheries, Culture and Youth Affairs Saji Cherian will inaugurate the newly-built headquarters of the Kerala State Coastal Area Development Corporation (KSCADC) at Kamaleswaram in the city on June 1.

The inaugural ceremony of the two-storey complex, to be held at 3.30 pm, will also witness the launch of a major overseas market expansion initiative of KSCADC, a state-owned company mandated to plan and implement programmes to tap the domestic and global market for fresh and value-added fish products and the socio-economic wellbeing of the coastal community.

Minister for General Education and Labour V Sivankutty will preside over the function where the documents relating to export of value-added fish products to Canada, Australia and New Zealand will be handed over to Transport Minister Antony Raju.

Cherian said the value-added fish products have huge overseas demand, especially from expatriate Malayalis. Tapping this market will benefit the fishery sector significantly. Considering this scope, more processing centres for value-addition of fish will be set up in the state to ensure fair price for fish and create job opportunities, the Minister added.

The 5,400 square-feet complex will also house offices of Harbour Engineering Department, Fisheries Regional Office, Matsyafed Office, and Hydrographic Survey Office. The facilities at the building include conference halls on both floors.

Corporation Mayor Arya Rajendran and Dr Shashi Tharoor, MP, will be the chief guests at the inaugural function. District Panchayat President D Suresh Kumar, Fisheries Department Principal Secretary K S Srinivas, Director of Fisheries Dr Adeela Abdulla, and KSCADC Managing Director PI Sheik Pareeth will also attend.

Seeking to harness the market, KSCADC has been exporting fish products to foreign countries after obtaining consent from Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) and Export Inspection Agency (EIA), Pareeth said.

Women workers from the coastal community at Sakthikulangara, Kollam, are enagaged in the processes of drying fish and production of as many as 18 value-added products using the modern technology developed by the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT).

KSCADC integrates the development activities in the coastal areas of Kerala including creation of infrastructure, technology adoptions, commercial activities, consultancy services, maintenance and dredging projects.