Prof ABM Mosharraf Husain, Bagerhat :
The illegal business of hunting sharks in the Bay of Bengal at Dublarchar point and Sundarban adjacent areas is going on unabated , it is widely alleged.
Taking the opportunity of the lack of administrative vigilance, a section of greedy fishermen are allegedly hunting the sharks indiscriminately for earning money. As a result, the bio-diversity of the Bay of Bengal as well of Sundarbans forest may be adversely affected, ecologists apprehended . But it is said by the fishermen that at present there is dearth of fish in the Bay of Bengal and they turned themselves to shark hunters instead of catching fish. Moreover, hunting of sharks is more profitable than that of fish but the administration opined that necessary action would be taken if the matter comes to their knowledge.
Concerned sources said that sharks normally move in the deep sea in flocks and the fishermen catch them using hooks with strong thread. Sometimes they catch sharks with one kind of special nets. After catching the sharks they are brought to the different chars of Dubla where they are dried and sold at high prices. Mizanur Rahman, a labourer working in a dry fish village of Dubla told this correspondent that hunting of sharks normally starts in the month of October and it continues till the middle March of a year.
The winter is the high time for catching sharks in the Bay of Bengal. The hunted sharks are brought to fish drying villages of Dublar char where they are dried up and sold to the middlemen who sell them to the different places of the country, particularly in Chittanang. According to him, sharks are mainly dried at Alorkol and Meher Alir Char areas. He adds that hunting of shakes at present is prohibited.
Some dry shark traders who are not willing to mention their names disclose to the newsmen that in order to meet up the growing demand of dried shark it is being hunted indiscriminately and in large scale in the sea defying the Govt order not to hunt the sharks.
They add that the standard sized dried shank is now being sold at at Tk.9 thousand to Tk.10 thousand per mound. One Abul who is associated with shark drying processing tells the newsmen that after catching the shark its belly is opened and substance in it (belly) is cleared off. Then it is hanged with fencing in the sun. After one week it turns into a dry fish. The dried shark is sent to the different places of the country, particularly to Sayedour and Chitagang and from their it is exported to Vietnam, Korea, China, Japan etc. countries.. He adds that shark is not only hunted at Dubla but also at other coastal areas like Cox’s bazaar, Kuakata etc. places.
Ilyas Hossain, a fish trader of Mongla tells the newsmen that shark is not easily rotten. So, after catching the shark in the deep sea no ice is required to preserve it like hilsa and other spices of fish .and that is why fishermen are very much interested to catch the shark. On the other hand, its price is higher than that of other fish. It is also learnt from more than one sources that hunting of shark increased in the recent years and for that reasons shark is now being hunted in the Bay indiscriminately mainly due to the sheer negligence and lack of vigilance of the forest department. In theprevious years a umber of hunted sharks were seized by the forest department But such an incident is never done at present. But the reasons are yet to be unknown It is learnt from the different sources that a section of greedy fishermen and shark hunters and even some dry fish traders are hunting sharks with the direct and indirect collaborations of a section of dishonest employees of the forest department, it is alleged.
Dr. Shaikh Faridul Islam, Chairman of ‘Save the Sundarban’ has expressed a deep concern over the hunting of sharks and said that it (hunting of sharks) was not permitted in the pass (BLC) when it was issued to the fishermen by the forest department. He urged the government to take necessary steps immediately to stop hunting of sharks , otherwise the bio-diversity of Sundarban forest will be adversely affected.
Dr. Mizanjur Rahman, an ecologist and Upazila Nirbahi Officer of Momgla tells that hunting of sharks will ultimately destroy the bio-diversity of Sundarban forest. He adds that hunters of sharks are more dangerous than the jungle pirates.
Amir Hossain Chowdhury, Divisional Forest Officer of the Eastern Division of Sundarbans told the newsmen that hunting of sharks is prohibited within the Sundarban forest.
He also said that a meeting was held with the Officer-in-charge of Dublar Char to stop catching sharks but in spite of that some dishonest fishermen are still doing this illegal practice.
Lt. Commander Atikur Rahman, Operation Officer of the Coastguards of the Western Zone deployed at Mongla told the newsmen that he does not know whether shark is being caught within Sundarbans. He added that if the Fishery Department seeks co-operation of the Coastguards, they will extend their helping hands to them.
