In a preparatory step for India’s 5th Marine Fisheries Census (MFC 2025), a mobile application VyAS-NAV has been launched for the digital based data collection with an aim to boost transparency and efficiency.
Marking a shift from traditional methods to a geo-referenced, app-based digital system, the MFC 2025 will cover a 1.2 million fisher households nationwide bringing in transparency and real-time validation. This mammoth exercise is coordinated by the Department of Fisheries (DoF) of the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY).
VyAS-NAV (Village jettY Appraisal NAVigator) was developed by the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) which is the nodal agency for implementing the marine fisheries census in nine coastal states.
The Marine Fisheries Census-2025 focuses on the exhaustive, precise, and timely documentation of every marine fisher family, fishing village, fishing craft and gear, as well as infrastructure facilities associated with fishing harbours and fish landing centres across the country.
Unlike in the past, customised mobile and tablet-based applications created by CMFRI will be used for data collection in a bid to reduce manual errors and accelerate data compilation for policy-level use.
VyAS-NAV app will be used by supervisors for field verification of fishing villages, fish landing centres, and fishing harbours. This is a foundational step to ensure comprehensive coverage and accuracy of the census frame. This app has features to record summary picture of villages based on primary and secondary sources. The supervisors are staff of CMFRI, Fishery Survey of India and the Fisheries Departments across the coastal states.
The core activity, scheduled for November–December 2025, involves trained enumerators — preferably from the local community — visiting each marine fisher household with smart devices. This is preceded by a robust preparatory phase. Emphasis will be given to record finer details of fishers like their demographic and socio-economic status, alternative livelihood options, and how and where government schemes can influence their status, all collected through a robust online digital platform. Officials will train enumerators in digital data collection and will validate village and infrastructure details using VyAS-NAV.
The marine fisheries sector in India has been a source of sustenance and growth for more than a million families, playing a vital role in the nation’s journey toward becoming a developed country by 2047.
