Hilsa received from Bangladesh
On Thursday West Bengal obtained up to 50 metric tonnes (MT) of Hilsa from Bangladesh which is the first consignment of the season. Although the size of the fishes is smaller and their prices dearer, importers said.
SA Maqsood, secretary of the Fish Importers Association in West Bengal said, around 50 MT of Hilsa from Bangladesh have already made its way to West Bengal. Another 30-40 MT are expected to reach over the weekend.
The Bangladesh government has consented about 49 companies to export around 2,420 MT of the fish through the Petrapole border this year. The shipments that remained will reach over a few days, this is said by the people who are aware of the development.
Hilsa is often called as the “ Queen of Fish” due to its taste and the Bangladeshi hilsa which is encountered in the Padma River, is often considered to be tastier than its Indian equivalents , which is seen in the Hooghly River in West Bengal. The Bangladeshi Hilsa is in great demand in Assam and Tripura.
The export of Hilsa since 2012 was imposed with a ban by the former Sheikh Hasina government. Since 2019 every year a thousand metric tonnes of the fish were allowed to be exported to India during this time of the year. This was considered to be a Durga Puja gift.
Picture credit: The Hindustan Times
He said that in 2021, 2022 and 2023 around 4,600 MT, 2900 MT and 3,950 MT of Hilsa from Bangladesh respectively were imported.
At the beginning of this year the fish importers association wrote to the interim government in Bangladesh to lift up the ban. On September 21, the ministry of foreign affairs of Bangladesh forwarded a statement saying they were allowing around 3000 metric tonnes of Hilsa to be exported to West Bengal.
Maqsood said that, by Friday the Hilsa which were imported reached the wholesale markets in Howrah, Patipukar, Sealdah and Siliguri. On Saturday they made their way to the local retail markets. But at this point of time the size of fishes is smaller and their prices dearer. This year the production has been low in Bangladesh.
The average size of fishes grabbed by West Bengal varies between 700 grams to around 1 kilo compared to 1 kilo-1.5 kilos during previous years. This year the prices are high and ranges from rupees 1000 to rupees 1,500 in the wholesale market.
Each year during the monsoons shoals it has been viewed that Hilsa swim several kilometres from the sea into the estuaries and upstream along the River Hoogly for spawning and after that they return to the Bay of Bengal. The eggs hatch into the freshwater and the sub- adult Hilsa swims downstream in the sea. Another set of them comes during February- March.
Joint secretary of West Bengal United Fishermen Association, Shyamsundar Das said that in West Bengal the Hilsa catch is decreasing over the years for multiple reasons. The production has not been satisfactory this year. So far only around 2000 metric tonnes have been hauled.
Hilsa catch went down
In 2011 the Hilsa catch was around 16500 MT. It decreased below 10000 MT around the next three years. In 2017 26000 metric tonnes of Hilsa were obtained, which is the highest haul in recent times. In 2020, during the Covid- 19 pandemic it went down to 2085, which is the lowest in recent years, a senior official of the state fishery department said.
Fishermen of West Bengal could only catch 6170 MT, 5600 MT and 6800 off Hilsa in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Picture credit: TVOS
It comprises several reasons behind the diminishing catch beginning from unrestrained fishing, pollution, rainfall, decreasing depth in rivers because of silt build up and river flush around this time of the year among others.
Das said that they are very fragile to exposure to subtle changes. They would move from sea to rivers for breeding and would swim in that direction where they acquire favourable conditions. If they don’t encounter suitable conditions in River Hooghly in West Bengal, they make their way to the Meghna- Padma estuary in Bangladesh.
Experts said that silt build up over the river beds near the mouth of the river is a major factor. If the Hilsa doesn’t encounter a depth of 30-40 feet, it wouldn;t swim upstream. In Hooghly this depth has come down to around 20-25 feet due to years of silt buildup.
