C T Online Desk: The government has taken measures to boost the production of different varieties of fish by preventing illegal fishing during the netting ban.
Bangladesh ranks third in the global ranking for inland open-water fish production. Bangladesh is the world’s largest hilsa producer.
As part of the Community Fish Guard (CFG) initiative launched by the government, fishermen are joining the awareness campaigns to discourage fishing in five hilsa sanctuaries during the ban on hilsa fishing.
“The fishermen are preventing illegal fishing and safeguarding hilsa in sanctuaries 24 hours,” said Dr Hedayet Ullah, scientist of ECOFISH II activity of WorldFish Bangladesh.
“The fishermen engaged in the initiative are raising awareness among their fellow fishermen not to catch fish during a ban. They also report about illegal fishing to coast guard, police and government agencies during the fishing bans,” he said, adding that sometimes the government agencies conduct drives along with the members of the community fish guard.
Raising mass awareness to conserve hilsa is very essential along with the legal framework and enforcement, he said.
The government has imposed a 22-day ban on catching, selling, storing and transporting hilsa from October 7 to 28 to ensure the safe spawning of the national fish during its peak breeding period.
The Department of Fisheries is engaging the Community Fish Guards to protect hilsa and Jatka during the fishing ban.
The fishermen have been paid Tk 1,600 each month when the netting was suspended, said the scientist.
The Community Fish Guard (CFG) initiative is a part of the ECOFISH project of WorldFish to protect designated areas during the fishing ban. It also provides information and assists law enforcement agencies, including the fisheries department.
A total of 302 fishermen have been working under the Community Fish Guard initiative from 15 Upazilas in six districts of Bangladesh where hilsa is abundant. The fishermen came from the 15 Upazilas of Bhola, Barisal, Patuakhali, Chandpur, Lakshmipur, and Shariatpur districts.
Using the hilsa conservation and development fund, the Department of Fisheries pays honoraria to these community fish guards to encourage them to perform their duties.
ECOFISH trained community fish guards on co-management, Jatka and mother hilsa conservation, and relevant fisheries laws and provided them with identity cards, trousers, towels, umbrellas, aprons, shoes, and flashlights for convenience. They have been working since 2016 to protect hilsa.
Sajaan Mal, a fisherman working under CFG at Katakhali landing center of Haimchar in Chandpur, said they are working under CFG initiative to protect hilsa.
“We are aware that fishermen should not net hilsa during the ban period, we also inform the government agencies about any illegal fishing during the netting period,” he said.
This year, during the main breeding season for hilsa, from October 7 to 28, hilsa harvesting, transportation, buying, selling, storage, and exchange are prohibited throughout the country.
In previous years, a complete ban on all types of fish, including hilsa, was imposed in five hilsa sanctuaries in five districts of the country from March 1 to April 30 to protect Jatka.
Under this ban, all types of fishing, including hilsa, are prohibited to catch in the Meghna-Kalabdar-Gazaria river of Barisal district’s Hijla-Mehendiganj Upazila; the Meghna river of Chandpur, Lakshmipur, and Bhola districts; the Tentulia river; and the Padma river of Shariatpur district.
The production of hilsa was 5.65 lakh tonnes in FY 2020-21 while the production was 5.50 lakh tonnes in FY 2019-20.
The country’s hilsa production has increased manifold due to the government’s different initiatives which include a temporal ban on fishing and livelihood support for the fishermen.
hilsa production has increased from 199,032 tonnes in 2002-03 to 496,417 tonnes in 2016-17.
