Although catching and selling hilsa is banned in Faridpur, hilsa was being sold freely from morning to evening at a market on the Padma river.

On Monday (28 October) evening, a mobile court raided Lal Khar Bazar in Char Madhabdia union of Faridpur Sadar upazila and seized five and a half maunds of hilsa. One fisherman was detained and sentenced to four days in jail, and a buyer was fined Tk 5,000. Others fled on hearing of the raid.

Sadar upazila fisheries officer Shirin Sharmin Khan said the administration had been running regular drives since the government banned hilsa fishing. "Today the fish were seized from the market itself during a drive," she said.

Fazle Rabbi, executive magistrate of the district administration, said the seized fish were brought and kept in front of the deputy commissioner's office. Officials of various madrasas and orphanages were called there and the fish distributed among them. The drive will continue until 3 November, he said.

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