A month after Indian fish traders wrote asking Bangladesh to lift its hilsa export ban for Durga Puja, about 500 tonnes of Gujarat hilsa have been sent into Bangladesh.
With hilsa from Gujarat's Bharuch region on sale in Bangladesh, a few physical signs can help buyers tell it from Padma river fish, though none is conclusive.
The Fish Importers' Association of Kolkata has written to Khandaker Abdul Muktadir seeking a permanent end to the ban in place since July 2012, saying the limited Durga Puja permits since 2019 are not enough.
A hilsa weighing about 1 to 1.5 kg is a popular choice for flavour, but freshness, build and origin count as much as size.
Barishal fishers catching few hilsa want the 22-day mother hilsa ban due from 4 October pushed back, and a proposal to delay it by 15 days is under review.
Between 100 and 150 maunds a day change hands at the Boro Station landing centre, yet a one-kilogram fish costs over Tk 3,000; a researcher blames silted chars in the Meghna estuary, pollution and current nets for the fish's retreat from fresh water.
At the Taltola and Agargaon markets on Friday, brinjal sold for Tk 100-140, tomato Tk 120-140 and bitter gourd Tk 60-80 a kilo; broiler eased Tk 10 to Tk 180, and a one-kilogram hilsa cost Tk 2,700-2,800.
A 2.7 kg hilsa netted in the Baleshwar river fetched Tk 15,930 at auction at the Patharghata BFDC fish landing centre in Barguna.
A fraud ring using fake Facebook pages and cut-price offers for Chandpur hilsa is taking buyers' advance payments and damaging genuine online fish sellers.
Indian traders have again asked Bangladesh for permission to import hilsa ahead of Durga Puja, and the commerce ministry says it views the request positively.
Police have arrested four members of a ring that defrauded people online for a long time by selling hilsa and other goods in Chandpur's name.
A giant hilsa weighing 2kg 560g caught in the Meghna river sold for Tk 15,000 at auction in Monpura, Bhola.
Hilsa from Gujarat, Mumbai and Myanmar is allegedly being sold as Bangladeshi hilsa in West Bengal's markets, prompting raids by food safety officials.
