India okays regional initiative

India yesterday cleared a proposal to extend its participation in a four-nation initiative, including Bangladesh, for sustainable development of fisheries in the Bay of Bengal.
A meeting of the cabinet approved the proposal of the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries and the Ministry of Agriculture for continuation of India's participation in the Bay of Bengal Programme Inter-Governmental Organization (BOBP-IGO) beyond the initial five-year period after its birth in April 2003.
The BOBP-IGO has been functioning with its headquarters in Chennai and Bangladesh, India, Maldives and Sri Lanka are the members of the arrangement.
The BOBP-IGO has played a stellar role in sustainable development of fisheries in the Bay of Bengal region and its contributions to the marine fisheries sector have been manifold ranging from introduction of new technologies to human resource development and valuable inputs into the policies and programmes of the member-countries.
It has established its position as a Regional Fisheries Body of repute in the international arena.
With the cabinet approving India's continued participation,
India will continue to annually contribute US$ 60,000 besides hosting the headquarters of BOBP-IGO at Chennai and meeting its cost at Rs 26 lakh per annum.