At first light, people of all ages wade into rivers and ponds with polo, the bell-shaped bamboo fish trap; some come up with boal, shol or rui, others with nothing. Early on Friday more than 100 amateur fishers took part in polo fishing in the waters of Tora, Mirzapur and Rathura in Baniajuri union, Ghior upazila, Manikganj, Ajker Patrika reported.
On the same day a polo baich, a fishing festival, was held on a branch of the Ichamati along about three kilometres of river from Baradia in Uthuli union past Korjona bridge to Thakurkandi, with at least 300 taking part. The day before, fishing took place in ponds at Sholdhara and Noyachar. News of the events is spread by drums in the markets or by loudspeaker, and organisers expect such gatherings at more than 100 places in the district through October.
Fisher Islam Khan said polo fishing is a different kind of joy: besides the fish, you meet friends and relatives. Mahfuz Bhuiyan said even with a small catch the pleasure of wading in is the same, and everyone talks about who got the biggest fish.
Elderly resident Barek Mia said native fish used to be plentiful and many caught big fish with a polo; there are fewer fish now, but people keep the tradition alive. From Kartik to Magh, as the water fell, polo fishing once filled the Ichamati, Dhaleshwari, Kaliganga, Gazikhali and Kantabati rivers; it still happens, but far less.
Bimal Roy, Manikganj regional coordinator of the research organisation BARCIK, said keeping the festival alive means protecting water bodies and the breeding grounds of native fish. Local people blame current nets, catching fry, pumping ponds dry and poisoning for the decline in the number and variety of native fish. Delwar Jahan of Ghior's natural farming centre and Baniajuri union chairman SR Ansari Biltu made the same point: if the water bodies and native fish survive, so will the tradition.
The report was filed by Ajker Patrika's correspondent in Ghior, Manikganj.
Photo: Polo fishing festival at Roul Beel, Chatmohar (illustrative), Sultan Ahmed Niloy / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Ajker Patrika
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