Hilsa caught in the Payra and Bishkhali rivers is being sold at small roadside markets along the riverbanks in Barguna. Local fishers bring their catch to the markets at night.

A visit after dusk on 22 November found the fish on sale at mobile stalls.

According to local sources, many people buy what they can afford when they see such fresh fish by the road. The hilsa are neither very large nor jatka (juvenile hilsa). They sell for Tk 400 a kg, while larger hilsa fetch Tk 520 a kg. Many buyers wait from the afternoon to get the fresh river fish.

Mohasin, of Ayla Patakata union, who had come to buy fish, told Banglanews that fish from the Payra and Bishkhali rivers at the local market tastes better than sea fish, so he was buying a little more. He said there are not many fish in the river, and fishers would make no profit if they took their small catch all the way to the Barguna market, so they sell it straight away at the Purakata ferry ghat.

A fish seller told Banglanews that they collect fish from fishers and sell it at the local market after dusk. Because the local fish is fresher than sea fish, buyers are keen, and people come from different places. With demand for fresh fish high, the stock sells out within two to three hours. "But there are comparatively few fish in the river. Even after so many bans and restrictions, we don't get hilsa," he said.

District fisheries officer Biswajit Kumar Deb told Banglanews that the Payra is one of Barguna's main rivers, but, as elsewhere, fewer hilsa are being found in it. He said hilsa are scarce because of a lack of awareness among fishers.

Source: Banglanews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.