Seasonal ban on hilsa fishing to boost output by 30,000cr fry

The 15-day ban on hilsa fishing during its breeding period in 2015 will help raise the output of the delicious fish by about 30,000 crore fry (jatka), predicts a senior fisheries scientist.

“It has been possible to conserve about 1.6 crore mother hilsa due to the 15-day ban which released about six lakh kilograms of eggs this year,” Dr M Anisur Rahman, senior scientific officer of Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute (Riverine Station, Chandpur), told a workshop in the capital yesterday .

If 50 percent of the eggs turn into spawns and only 10 percent of these spawns survive, he said, around 30,000 crore hilsa fry will get added to the country's hilsa stock.

Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute organised the workshop on 'research progress and future plan in developing hilsa resource' at Matshya Bhaban in the capital, observing the Jatka Conservation Week 2016.

In his power-point presentation, Dr Rahman said about 36.6 percent of egg-bearing hilsa released eggs this year, which is a very positive thing in hilsa conservation.

Stressing the need for dredging the country's rivers to ensue free movement of hilsa, he said: “If we cannot do so, there's a possibility for hilsa to migrate from our country to other countries.” The scientist urged the authorities concerned to initiate a research to identify why Chandana and Golta hilsas -- the two species of hilsa - have marked a sharp fall in the country these days.

Fisheries and Livestock Minister Muhammed Sayedul Hoque said the government has taken various steps to boost the country's hilsa production.

If all kinds of current nets are prohibited, he said, it will be quite impossible task to conserve hilsa and other fish species.

Director general of Bangladesh Research Institute Dr Yahiya Mahmud said the Department of Fisheries is expected to produce over 4 lakh metric tonnes of hilsa, worth about Tk 24,000 crore.