Gandhinagar: The state govt on Wednesday amended its scheme to provide VAT relief on diesel to all mechanised fishing boats, removing the earlier restriction that limited the benefit to boats measuring less than 20 metres in length.After the cabinet meeting, state govt spokesperson Jitu Vaghani said, “All mechanised fishing boats in the state, including deep-sea vessels, can now benefit from the scheme.”He added that every fishing boat must be registered on the ‘ReALCRaft’ portal and must hold a valid fishing licence. He said that more than 18,000 registered mechanised fishing boats in the state are now eligible for diesel VAT relief.Vaghani said the govt will issue a “diesel card” to all eligible mechanised boats. Boats holding this card will receive diesel VAT relief at a rate of up to Rs 15 per litre.Since fishermen from all categories — small, medium and large — will receive equal benefit, their daily diesel expenses will be reduced substantially, the spokesperson said, urging all fishermen to complete the registrations on the portal and obtain fishing licences if they have not.
