Fishers' nets have brought in shoals of hilsa at the very start of the season. Fishers returned from the deep sea with trawlers full of hilsa to Diamond Harbour and Namkhana harbour in South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal. Fifteen to 20 trawlers have already arrived at the harbour, each carrying about 30 to 50 crates of silvery hilsa.
Between 25 and 30 tonnes of hilsa have been caught at the start of this year's season. The average weight of the fish is 500 to 600/650 grams, and several trawlers caught hilsa weighing 800 grams to 1 kg. Having found good hilsa so early, fishers hope larger quantities, and bigger fish, will come in over the next few days.
Ban lifted on 14 June
Jagannath Sarkar, secretary of the fish wholesalers' association, said: "We had a two-month ban on fishing. The ban was lifted on 14 June, and the fishers then set out into the deep sea with their trawlers. We have received news that several trawlers have returned to Namkhana harbour."
He said each trawler had caught 40 to 50 maunds of hilsa, with the rest of the catch made up of other sea fish. "Given the way hilsa are being found at the start of the season, we hope even better hilsa will be caught later," he said.
He added that early-season hilsa of 500 to 600 grams would sell for 1,200 to 1,300 rupees and fish of 1 kg for 1,800 to 2,000 rupees. "Because this is the first hilsa of the season, prices will be a little higher. As supply increases, prices will keep falling," he said.
Thousands of fishers at sea
West Bengal's fishers headed into the deep sea to catch hilsa as soon as the government ban was lifted. Several thousand fishers have set out with trawlers from Diamond Harbour, Namkhana, Frasergunj and other places in the Sundarbans area of South 24 Parganas.
For several years hilsa had not been turning up in fishers' nets in the same way, so they are delighted with this year's early shoals. Those concerned believe that help from the Indian space agency ISRO has enabled fishers to catch more hilsa at the start of this year than before.
Bengalis, known for their love of fish and rice, are delighted that hilsa is being caught at the start of the season. The price may be a little high, but silvery hilsa is on its way to their plates.
Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.
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