Ban on 'jatka' catching takes effect
A seven-month ban on catching 'jatka' (hilsa fry less than 9 inches or 23 centimetres in length) from November 1 to May 31 began in all hilsa regions of the country Sunday.
Abdul Aziz, deputy director and Bankim Chandra, assistant director of Barisal office of fisheries department said, hilsa fries grow 2-2.5 cm in length per month and start moving towards sea after reaching 15-17 cm in length. They start return journey to sweet water rivers after growing 25-28 cm, each having an average 300-450 grams weights, for laying eggs.
So, if only 10-20 per cent of 'jatka' could be saved from catching, then hilsa resources of around of two lakh tons worth hundreds of cores of taka could be increased every year, said the officials.
But while visiting the markets in Barisal city on Sunday, it was found that open sale of 'jatka' was on under the nose of the law enforcers.
Local fisheries department officials said, they were unable to take action against 'jatka' catchers due to fund constraints, lack of manpower and other logistic support and also for loopholes in the law.
Fish Research Institute sources here said hilsa resources doubled in last 14 years as catching of hilsa was 1.47 lakh metric tonnes in 1983; 2.20 lakhs MTs in 2002, 2.8 lakh MTs in 2007 and more than 3 lakh MTs in 2008.
A study says the contribution of hilsa to the country's gross domestic product is 2 per cent and this fishing sector earns about 9 to 12 per cent of total forex.
Steps taken by the government for strictly imposing and monitoring ban on using thinly knitted current nets, seven months (November-May) ban on 'jatka' catching, two months (March-April) ban of hilsha fishing in four sanctuaries, 10-day (October 15-24) ban on hilsa fishing in 7000 kilometer areas in the country have started giving positive results in increasing hilsa resources of the country, the sources added.
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