Approved hilsa exports to India could not be made because catching, transporting and selling hilsa were banned for 22 days. The commerce ministry has therefore extended the deadline for hilsa exports to India to 5 November.

The ministry issued the instruction in a letter on the night of 26 October.

The instruction, signed by Tania Islam, deputy secretary of the ministry's Export-2 branch, says 115 firms had been permitted to export 40 tonnes of hilsa each to India for Durga Puja. But because the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock banned catching, transporting, storing, marketing, buying, selling and exchanging hilsa across the country from 4 to 25 October, the firms could not complete their exports in time. The deadline has therefore been extended to 5 November 2021.

Under the conditions, exporters must follow the rules of the Export Policy 2018-2021, have shipments physically inspected by customs, and submit export papers to the Export-2 branch after each consignment. No more hilsa than the approved quantity may be sent.

If the government imposes any restriction on catching or transporting fish, the permission will expire as soon as it takes effect. The permission is not transferable in any way, and hilsa may not be exported through subcontracts by anyone other than the approved exporter.

The government had halted hilsa fishing, transport and sale for 22 days from 4 to 26 October to protect breeding, and hilsa exports to India through Benapole port were suspended during that time.

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