THIS was supposed to be a good year for Hilsa traders and anglers as with the beginning of the season, a record number of the Hilsa fish are being netted. Much to everyone’s delight, large sized Hilsas are also flooding the local markets, but the fishermen and the traders are not happy for much lower price compared to previous years. This is a good news for buyers who never have had the opportunity to buy such large hilsas earlier at such a low price, but it’s slowly becoming a cause for concern for traders. Traders are now demanding to allow them to export the fish as freezing facilities are very limited and the there is no sustainable industry based on the fish process like canning.
In Barishal, around 3000 maunds of hilsa is being caught every day, which is excessive than the usual demand. Earlier at the beginning of the season, 800-1,000 maunds of Hilsa were coming into the market. There has been a lot of rainfall at the beginning of the monsoon this year, which is favourable for Hilsa breeding and growth. Hilsa production is increasing every year due to implementation of government’s Hilsa protection programme. Last year, the Barishal division saw a total of 3.29 lakh tonnes of hilsa out of 5.17 lakh tonnes produced in the country.
Hilsa is exported either frozen or chilled. Chilled Hilsa is mostly exported to India, while frozen Hilsa is mostly exported to the expatriate Bangladeshis living abroad. Hilsa is a pride fish of Bangladesh and the country should aim at maintaining a stock justified by existing knowledge and resources available to the government.
The issue of Hilsa export should be an independent deal because catching Hilsa should aim at maintaining a healthy stock of fish and optimal allocation of resources. Regional co-operation is justified because the stock is held in common along with India and Myanmar. The government can also help develop Hilsa based industry and thus, export canned Hilsa.
