Hilsa Output in Manikganj's Padma Falls 46 Percent in Four Years as Mother Hilsa Fishing Continues Despite Ban

Hilsa production in the lower Padma in Manikganj has fallen by more than 46 percent in four years, while fishing of egg-bearing mother hilsa and open selling continue in the district's Padma and Jamuna rivers despite a 22-day breeding-season government ban running until October 29.

In the sanctuary areas of Harirampur, Daulatpur and Shibalaya upazilas, fishing is being carried out day and night using harmful current nets, according to an on-the-spot account.

From Daulatpur to Nayakandi in Shibalaya, hilsa is being sold openly before dawn and at night at riverside points including Alokdia, Char Shibalaya, Hemganj, Baghutia, Jafarganj, Dala Maluchi and Goalia. Traders buy the fish cheaply and take it by auto-rickshaw to Shibalaya and other parts of the district to sell at higher prices.

Saiful Islam, a fish seller in the Kalabagan area of Shibalaya, said seasonal fishers sell small hilsa for 400 to 500 taka and fish weighing 800 grams to 1 kilogram for 800 to 900 taka. Brought to other areas, the 1-kilogram fish sell for 1,400 to 1,500 taka per kilogram and the smaller ones for 700 to 800 taka.

According to the Department of Fisheries' Yearbook of Fisheries Statistics of Bangladesh, hilsa harvest in Manikganj's lower Padma fell by 46.33 percent, or 537 tonnes, in four years. Production was 1,159 tonnes in fiscal 2020-21, 1,117 tonnes in 2021-22, 1,122 tonnes in 2022-23, 1,090 tonnes in 2023-24 and dropped to 622 tonnes in 2024-25.

Environmentalist Nazrul Islam said submerged chars in the river, siltation reducing navigability, changes in water flow and salinity, waste pollution, loud mechanical boats and the use of current nets and 'China duari' traps to kill jatka and mother hilsa are behind the crisis. Many registered fishers in the district, finding no fish, have been forced to sell their boats and nets and take up rickshaw pulling or farm work, he added.

Manikganj District Fisheries Officer Sheikh Monirul Islam Monir said they face limitations because of a lack of adequate support and speedboats and a shortage of coordinated measures. As the vast river area cannot be covered at once, when the administration raids one place, unscrupulous fishers start fishing in another place.

It has been alleged that while professional fishers are spending hard days without going to the river at this time, at least three thousand seasonal fishers in the char areas are involved in illegal fishing.

Seasonal fishers Faruk Hossain, Barek Sheikh and Amjad Hossain of Goalia said they keep track of mobile court drives through their own sources; when a drive begins they move away after getting a phone call and return to the river once the administration leaves. On days when fish sell less, they rent deep freezers in riverside houses to store the fish and sell it in the market after the ban ends, and they buy extra current nets in advance to evade drives.

Fishers who go to the river also said only about 10 out of 100 fishers have registered 'fisher cards', so they do not receive government support, and they are forced to fish to earn a living.

Shibalaya Upazila Fisheries Officer Sathi Rani Niyogi said 354 kilograms of hilsa and 4.7 million metres of current net, with an estimated value of five crore taka, were seized in 64 drives to protect mother hilsa, and 37 fishers were jailed or fined.