Business Desk :
Nine companies have exported over 90 more tons of ilish worth $905,000 to India in the last 10 days.
Earlier, 1,137 tons of ilish were sent to India. Thursday was the last day to export ilish in this season, said As-Wadul, fisheries inspector at Benapole Fisheries Quarantine.
On October 26, the government issued a notification extending the time for exporting ilish to India.
A circular signed by Commerce Ministry Deputy Secretary Tania Islam said that some 115 companies were allowed to export 4,600 tons of ilish, 40 tons each.
But since October 4 to 25 was the main breeding season for ilish, the harvesting, transporting, marketing and selling of ilish was banned all over the country.
The approved companies could not export ilish during the time. For this, the period to export ilish was extended till November 5.
Till October 3, in the first phase, 51 companies exported 1,137 tons of ilish to India. The first shipment went through Benapole on September 22. In the second phase, 90.5 tons of Ilish was sent to India, said As-Wadul.
The price of ilish was fixed at $10 per kg, he added.
Exporter Nurul Amin said the government stopped exporting ilish in 2012 due to a shortage of ilish production in the country. Later, on the basis of friendship and camaraderie, exporting ilish to India every year resumed in 2019.
According to the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, ilish production jumped from 300,000 tons in 2008-09 to 500,000 tons in 2017-18.
In the last financial year, 550,000 tons of ilish were caught in the country, 66% of which was from the districts under Barisal division.
The government has planned to implement a mega project worth Tk247 crore to increase the availability of ilish or Hilsa, which will eventually help reduce its price.
Bangladesh produces the highest number of ilish in the world – more than 80%.
