BARISHAL, July 17: The arrival of big-size sea hilsa (one kilogram or more) has been taking place for the last few days at the wholesale market on the portroad of the district.
Everyday, warehouse owners, wholesalers and retail traders are passing busy time since morning to evening in processing these big size hilsas. These are being brought to different parts of the country.
Despite comparatively poor arrivals of fishes and lower prices on Wednesday and Thursday in this market, the arrival was adequate in the beginning of this month.
After the eight-month-long ban on hilsa catching in the internal rivers was lifted on June 30, around 10,000 maunds of hilsa arrived in the market till July 8, said Nirob Hossain Tutul, general secretary of Barishal District Fish Warehouses Association. Most of the hilsas were of big size. He said these were caught from different internal rivers in Barishal.
The abudance of sea hilsa or fishing hilsa in the wholesale market was seen with the sweet water hilsa. More than one warehouses and traders said, most of these hilsas were of big size. Yet the prices of these hilsas were cheaper than those of the sweet water hilsas, they added.
A warehouse proprietor said, on Thursday, the arrival of hilsa was comparatively thin at the wholesale market after lifing of the ban on June 30. He said the hilsas which are coming from the internal rivers are weighted one kilogram or more. The arrival of hilsas below 500 gram are almost absent in the market, they added.
Everyday, hilsas are coming to the wholesale market from differtent points of the Meghna River and other internal rivers in Char Mamtaj, Bholar Shyamraj, Loharhaat, Hizla, Babuganj, Kaliganj and Ulania areas. Most of these hilsas are of big size. In addition, sea hilsas are also coming.
On Wednesday, in the wholesale market, per maund of sweet water hilsa of 500-800 gram was sold at Tk 20,000-22,000, 800 gram to one kg per maund hilsa at Tk 23,000-25,000, and 1,300gram to 1,5000 gram or more at Tk 25,000-28,000.
On the basis of per maund, sea hilsas of these sizes were sold in lower rates by about two thousand taka in the wholesale market. These were the prices of Wednesday last. But the prices were lower in the beginning of the week as the arrivals of hilsas were aplenty.
Nirob Hossain Tutul further said, the arrival of hilsa in the wholesale market was 1,246 maunds on Saturday, 2,328 maunds on Sunday, and 1,468 maunds on Monday.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, the volume was around 4,000 maunds. Most of these hilsas were of big size, and these were cauight in internal rivers, according to the fishermen.
On the other hand, on condition of anonymity, a trader in Barishal wholesale market, said, the big-sized sea hilsas are being passed with the sweert water hilsas; in fact, most of these hilsasa are of sea-fishing ones.
It can be mentioned that the eight-month long ban on catching of all types of fishes including Jhatka in the internal rivers, transporting and marketing was imposed on November 1. The ban period ended on June 30.
In the 2018-19 fuiscal year, the tolerable collection of hilsa was about 5.25 lakh metric tons (MT). It increased to 5.50 lakh MT in 2019-20 fiscal year, acordiing to Fisherues Department.
All types of fishing activities remain susapended for 22 days at the time of Aswin full moon for facilating breeding of mother hilsas in 7,000 sq kilo of coastal areas. As part of this period, the eight-month long banning from November 1 to June 30 is imposed to preserve jhatka.
The previous length of Jhatka has been re-fixed to 30cm. This year too the ban was imposed.
Around 4,50,000 fishing families are engaged in hilsa catchging in 145 upazilas of 40 districts. Of them, 32 per cent are of full time while 46 per cent are of short time. In marketing, transporting, processing, net, boat and ice making, around 20-25 lakh people are employed.
Only in Barishal Division, 3.25 lakh fishermen in six districts are engaged in fishing. Of them, 65 per cent are of full time fishers, sources in Barishal Fisheries Department said.
