About 54.5 metric tonnes of hilsa from 10 firms went to India through Benapole port between noon and 8pm on Thursday (26 September). The export price is $10 a kg, or roughly Tk 1,200 a kg in Bangladeshi money.

Mahbubur Rahman, fisheries quarantine officer at the Benapole fisheries office, confirmed this.

He said the hilsa consignments, carrying commerce ministry permits, arrived at the port from Thursday morning until evening and were cleared for export to India after quality checks. In today's first shipment, 10 firms were allowed to send 54.5 metric tonnes into India. There will be no exports on Friday, the weekly holiday, and exports will resume on Saturday. Exports will also take place on Sunday if the Indian authorities are willing to take hilsa, although Indian authorities generally do not import or export any fish on Sundays, he said.

On 25 September, the commerce ministry cleared 49 exporters to export 2,420 metric tonnes of hilsa. Of them, 48 were allowed 50 metric tonnes each and one was allowed 20 metric tonnes. The permission runs until 12 October. For several years, Padma hilsa had gone from Bangladesh to West Bengal during the festive season, and earlier governments called it "gift hilsa". After the political changeover, however, the interim government said it would take a tough stance on sending hilsa to India, though it later changed its position.

People at the port said hilsa exports were stopped in 2012 and later resumed. Last year the export permit was for 3,900 metric tonnes; this year permission has been given for about 2,500 tonnes. The Fish Importers Association (FIA), an organisation of Indian fish importers in Kolkata, asked Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossain on 9 September to consider hilsa exports from Bangladesh for Durga Puja. The government then allowed 2,420 metric tonnes of exports to India on special consideration, and exports began on Thursday. Ordinary traders say hilsa exports will play a big role in improving relations between the two countries.

Hilsa is exported only for Durga Puja, on special consideration. Last year, against a permit of 3,900 metric tonnes, only 631 metric tonnes and 240 kg were actually exported. Several owners of firms that received approval said they would not be able to export their full quota this time either. Hilsa prices in the market are already high and have risen further on news of the exports, so there is doubt whether enough hilsa will be available.

Othello Chowdhury, deputy commissioner of Benapole Customs, said Bangladeshi exporters were supplying hilsa at $10 a kg, about Tk 1,200 in Bangladeshi money. By 8pm, 10 firms had exported 54.5 metric tonnes of hilsa to India after clearance from Benapole Custom House.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.