Anisul Islam Noor :
Prices of Hilsa are rising in the city markets ahead Pahela Baishakh, as traders go for stockpiling the delicious fish to gain hefty profit, market insiders said.
This year the Baishakhi festival will be celebrated on April 14. Pahela Baishakh, the first day of Bangla New Year, being celebrated in Bangladesh and some parts of India since the Mughal period. Hilsa is widely consumed on the day as a Bengali tradition.
Traders said Hilsa fishing banned temporarily in many sanctuaries for two months (March-April) by the government also helped raise the price. Hilsa became dearer after its prices doubled just in a week, according to kitchen market traders.
The presence of big and medium-sized Hilsa has declined in the market. Prices of those have risen sharply. A medium-sized Hilsa was selling at Tk 1,000- Tk 1,200, which was Tk 700-Tk 750 per piece earlier. Big-size hilsa was rare and selling at Tk 2,000- Tk 2,400 at kitchen corners like Banalata Kitchen of New market, Hatirpool, Palashi, Shantinagar and Kaptan Bazar Kitchen Markets in the capital.
Suresh Saha, a fish retail seller at Kaptan Bazar kitchen market said that he is selling per kg smaller fish at Tk 900 to Tk 1,000, which was Tk 550-Tk 600 a week ago.
He said prices will be increasing further till Pahela Baishakh celebration as many consumers are in a hurry to store the silver fish in refrigerators to avoid abnormal price during the festival.
Big traders are also storing the Jatiya fish in a large volume to make hefty profit on the occasion of Pahela Baishakh, he said.
Abdur Rahim, a fish trader of Karwan Bazar said the price being increased significantly at wholesales in Mawa, Karwan Bazar and Shawarighat. A maund (40 kg) medium-sized Hilsa was selling between Tk 36,000 and Tk 38,000 there now, which was just Tk 23,500-24,000 earlier at Sadarghat.
Many fish traders are busy storing Hilsa in deep fridges, which would be sold just before Pahela Baishakh to make windfall profit, he said.
Wholeselers, however, said the prices of Hilsa have shot abnormally at the wholesale markets (Arot) in Barisal, Barguna, Cox’s Bazar and Patuakhali districts.
Md. Mofij Uddin, a fish trader at Shawarighat in the city, said the price has almost doubled in a week at the arots. He pointed out that the ban on fishing in rivers has also helped increase the price in Arots. The government has banned fishing in Chandpur and Lakshmipur also to protect also the juvenile and brood hilsa.
