A two-month ban on fishing to protect jatka (young hilsa) has begun in six river zones, including the Padma and Meghna at Chandpur. The ban started at midnight on Friday (28 February) and will run until 30 April.

Md Imtiaz Ahmed, assistant superintendent of police of the Chandpur river zone, confirmed this.

He said the river police had begun operations on the rivers to protect jatka. More than 150 police members from 12 river police stations and outposts will be deployed, with 26 patrol teams taking turns to conduct drives on the river. Police are stationed on the river, and action will be taken under the fisheries law against any fisher who goes out on the river in breach of the law.

The river police said casting nets, catching, buying, selling, storing and transporting fish is completely banned along 100 kilometres from Shatnal in Matlab Uttar upazila of Chandpur to Char Alexander in Lakshmipur district. Any fisher caught fishing in breach of the ban faces at least one to two years in jail, or a fine of up to Tk 5,000, or both.

Meanwhile, from dawn on Saturday (1 March), the fisheries department, river police and Coast Guard began patrols in the Padma-Meghna river area of Chandpur to protect jatka. River police members are going round the fishing villages by speedboat, making announcements by loudspeaker so that no one goes out to fish in breach of the ban.

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