Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has appealed to the Union government to provide urgent relief for the state’s aqua farmers, who are reeling under heavy losses following US-imposed tariffs on shrimp imports.

In separate letters to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, and Fisheries Minister Rajeev Ranjan Singh, Naidu sought financial, policy, and export support to mitigate the crisis. He requested GST waivers on frozen shrimp, a 240-day moratorium on loan repayments, interest subsidies, and interim financial aid for exporters.

Highlighting the scale of the problem, Naidu said Andhra Pradesh contributes 80% of India’s shrimp exports and 34% of marine exports, worth nearly ₹21,246 crore annually. With US tariffs leading to losses estimated at ₹25,000 crore, about half of export orders have been cancelled, and nearly ₹600 crore in tariff burden has hit 2,000 containers.

The CM noted that about 2.5 lakh aqua farmer families and 30 lakh people in allied sectors are directly impacted. While the state has initiated measures—such as negotiating lower feed prices and considering subsidized transformer supply—Naidu stressed that central intervention is crucial.

He also urged the Centre to diversify export markets by negotiating FTAs with the EU, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Russia, while expanding the domestic seafood market. His proposals include a ₹100 crore corpus fund, establishment of cold storage and hygienic markets, and awareness campaigns to boost seafood consumption in India, which currently averages only 12–13 kg per capita annually compared to the global average of 20–30 kg.

Naidu further requested dedicated trains for aqua transport, one-time top-up loans for fishermen, and strengthening cold-chain facilities under the Fisheries Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF).