Drives on the first day of the ban in Noakhali Sadar and Begumganj upazilas seized 65 kg of hilsa. The fish were then distributed among students at orphanages.

On Sunday (13 October), senior upazila fisheries officer Manas Mondal led a drive at the Maijdee municipal market in Sadar, and senior upazila fisheries officer Masuma Akter led one at Golabaria bazar in Chowmuhani, Begumganj.

Some 20 kg of hilsa were seized at the Maijdee municipal market and 45 kg at Golabaria bazar in Chowmuhani.

Sadar upazila senior fisheries officer Manas Mondal said the drive at the municipal market was held on the first day of the 22-day ban to protect mother hilsa. The 20 kg of hilsa seized there were distributed to the orphanages of Bahtun Nur Ashrafia Madrasa and Talimul Quran Madrasa.

Begumganj upazila senior fisheries officer Masuma Akter said the drive in Chowmuhani, Begumganj, was held on the first day of the ban, and the 45 kg of seized hilsa were distributed to two orphanages. The drives will continue until 3 November, she said.

Sayem Md Omar, a teacher at Bahtun Nur Ashrafia Madrasa, said: "Hilsa is so expensive that eating hilsa at the madrasa is like a dream. The fisheries officer has donated hilsa to our madrasa's orphanage. The students were very happy to hear the news. We thank everyone involved."

District fisheries officer Mohammad Iqbal Hossain said the government had banned catching all kinds of fish, including hilsa, in the sea for 22 days from 13 October to protect mother hilsa and boost breeding. Anyone who defies the ban during this time will face strict punishment, he said.

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