Kazi Zahidul Hasan :
Bangladesh has exported 172.49 metric tonnes (MT) of hilsa to India ahead of the Durga Puja – the biggest religious festival of the Hindu community.
The value of the exported fish is US$ 17,24,900, according to the Office of the Fish Inspection and Quality Control Center, Benapole Land Port (Sharsa), Jashore.
Earlier on September 20 and 23 this year, the government gave a special permission to export around 4,600 MT of hilsa to India through 115 firms after temporarily relaxing the ban on its export as a gesture of goodwill on the occasion of Durga Puja.
Each of the firm was allowed to export 40 MT of the Hilsa to India from 23 September to October 3 this year. But 18 trading houses out of 115 could take the opportunity and shipped only 172.49 MT (1 MT is equal to 1000 kg) of hilsa to the neighbouring country by the end of Sunday, the deadline given for the fish shipments. Besides, 97 traders cannot export even one kelogram (kg) of hilsa to India, according Benapole Fish Inspection and Quality Control Center.
The firms which have been able to ship the fish are BDS Corporation (8 MT), M/s Biswas Trader (15 MT), M/s Sazzad Enterprise (5 MT), KGN Enterprise (4 MT), JBS Food Products and Industries (17 MT), Padma Agro Fisheres (4 MT), AR International (1.5 MT), Eutech Systems Ltd (12 MT), Nora Fish Farm (1.5 MT), Bristi Enterprise (6 MT), Pacific Fish Products Limited (16.5 MT), Popular Trade Syndicate (5 MT), Arpita Trade International (5 MT), Nirala Sea Foods Limited (30 MT), IB Bazzar Pvt Ltd (5 MT), M/s Rupa Enterprise (4 MT), National Agro Fisheries (4 MT) and JS Enterprise (4.99 MT).
The companies had to comply with the export guidelines and pass through a rigorous testing process for exporting hilsa to India.
“We have failed to fulfil the export quota due to the tight schedule and non-availability of the fish in the sea. Exporters had only nine days to ship the consignment,” a Benapole based fish trader told the New Nation yesterday.
He said, traders have been able to ship 50 MT of hilsa daily and it was supposed to take around three months to send the huge consignment (4600 MT).
Last year, some 1,475 MT of hilsa were exported to India ahead of the Durga Puja.
