<h1>Government to fund and build first mud crab hatchery with Rs 2.31 crore and 500,000 seed annual capacity</h1> The state government will fund and construct the state's first mud crab hatchery in a coastal port town with a Rs 2.31 crore investment and a 500,000-seed annual capacity. Implementation will be governed by a tripartite agreement among the state environmental department (providing project oversight), the fisheries directorate, and a national aquaculture research centre (providing technical expertise), with financing routed through a climate-resilience coastal project vehicle. The initiative aims to localize seed supply, reduce interjurisdictional dependence, support fishery livelihoods during a statutorily imposed seasonal fishing ban, and involve habitat-restoration and farmer-training components that implicate regulatory, funding- and compliance-related responsibilities.