Hilsa prices have climbed again at Chandpur's fish landings ahead of the breeding-season ban. A one-kilogram hilsa that sold for Tk 2,500 a kg two weeks ago fetched Tk 2,800-3,000 on Saturday. Wholesalers and traders say demand outstrips supply, leaving no room for prices to fall.
At Bahariya landing in Lakshmipur Model union of Chandpur Sadar, fishers brought in catches every little while, none bigger than 500 grams, and the fish sold almost as soon as they were called. Small hilsa went for Tk 300-500 a hali (four fish), and 500-gram fish for Tk 2,000 a hali. Md Jahangir Soyal, a wholesaler at Harina landing, said about 200 maunds a day had been arriving for two weeks but less in recent days.
Bahariya fisher Hannan Gazi said catches rose a little at the end of the season after a very poor August, barely covering costs. Nazrul Islam of Hanarchar said ten men work on his boat and rubbish fouling their net would keep them off the river that day. Shobebarat Sarkar, general secretary of the Chandpur fish traders' association, said many people who came hoping for cheaper hilsa before the ban were going home empty-handed.
Mirza Omar Faruk, senior fisheries officer for Chandpur Sadar, said landings had risen at the last moment and the fish were larger on average this year. All fishing will be banned in sanctuary areas for 22 days from 8 to 29 October, with jail or fines for offenders, and an awareness campaign against catching mother hilsa has begun. If the breeding season succeeds, he said, the fishers will reap the benefit.
The report is by Banglanews24 district correspondent Muhammad Masud Alam.
Photo: DelwarHossain / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Banglanews24
Comments
(0)