Hilsa fishing ban ends, fishermen ready!

More than two lakh fishermen of Bhola are ready to return to the river after a two-month government ban. To increase the production of Hilsa, all types of fishing were banned in the 190-km area of ​​the Meghna-Tentulia river in Bhola for the two months of March and April. The ban ends today, Wednesday, April 30, at midnight.

According to the Bhola District Fisheries Office, 540 operations and 60 mobile courts were conducted in seven upazilas of the district during the ban. Two fishermen have also been sentenced to prison in six of these cases.

A field visit showed that fishermen are now spending a busy time at the head of the Ilisha Chadar Mata, Bholarkhal, Patarkhal in Daulatkhan and Samraj fish ghat in Char Fashion in Sadar upazila. Some are weaving nets, some are repairing the engines of trawlers, and some are preparing the Majhimalla to go down to the river. There is a festive atmosphere in the entire area.

Local fisherman Md. Abdullah Majhi, Siraj Majhi, Nagar Majhi and Abu Taher said, “The ban will end at midnight today. We did not go to the river as per the government rules. We have been in great difficulty with our families for the past two months. The government assistance was very limited—only rice was provided, but the rest of our needs were not met. Now that we can catch fish, that hardship will be gone.”

Their comments revealed hope as well as fear. If the fish in the river are scarce, it will be difficult to repay the loan. Many said, “We have taken out loans to fix the trawler, repair the net. If we do not catch fish in the river, we will be in a lot of trouble.”

On the other hand, the aratdars say that the arat was closed during the campaign. Now, preparations have been made to clean the arat and reopen it. They brought Dadan from the locality and gave it to the fishermen, and now they hope that the loan will be repaid when fishing starts in the river.

District Fisheries Officer Biswajit Kumar Deb said, "We have successfully implemented this ban in March-April. The mother hilsa has laid eggs, the fry have had a chance to grow up. We hope that the production of hilsa will be good this year. Government food assistance has also been delivered to the fishermen." It is worth noting that the target of 185,000 tonnes of hilsa production has been set in Bhola for the 2024-25 fiscal year, which the Fisheries Department hopes to exceed.