BARISHAL, Aug 8: Occupying water bodies including marshes, ponds and canals in the southern region is threatening fish habitats.
According to opinions of fisheries experts, it is a great threat for the fisheries sector.
Despite that, more or less fishes are cultivated in 54.56 lakh hectares of water bodies in the region including about 4,27,000 ponds, 667 Boropeet, 90 rivers, 43 beels, one Baor or dead river, 1,500 canals, and 625 submersible lands.
In the 2022-23 financial year (FY), about 5.5 lakh metric tons (MT) of fishes were produced in these marshes against 5.23 lakh tonnes including 3.75 lakh tonnes of Hilsa in FY 2017-18.
The fish production was 2.98 lakh MT in FY-2008-09. In FY- 2023, the total Hilsa production in the country was 5.71 MT.
Besides, the production of ruhi, pangas, stinging cat fish, cat fish, climbing fish, tilapia, shrimps and other fishes was 1.5 lakh MT.
During this period, about 18,000 kilogram of fry and 25.18 lakh of fingerlings were produced in 50 hatcheries and 923 nurseries in the government-private levels.
About five lakh fishers of the southern region including 3,02,474 registered ones are dependent on the fisheries sector.
According to the DoF, the number of fishing family in the region is about 2.5 lakh.
According to another statistics of the DoF, in all eight divisions of the country, about 3.50 lakh fishers are only in the Barishal Division; of them 65 per cent fishers run round the clock fishing while 35 per cent makes part-time fishing.
From the revenue and development budgets, a total of 53 lakh fingerlings were released by the DoF in about 2,000 marshes in the Barishal region in the FY-2023.
At present, 1,200 fishers are producing about 1,000 MT of fishes in about 1,500 cages in the region.
Along with fish cultivation, crab and mud eel farming are expanded significantly in different districts of the southern region.
In FY-2021-22, according to the DoF sources, 3,000 MT of mud eel were produced in the region while 300 MT of crabs were produced in 750 farms.
A total of 25 exhibition farms of teenage crabs in ponds, of fattening crabs in pan, and cage and of mud eel farming at social level have been hanged in 11 upazilas of six districts.
Besides, 1,500 to 2,000 MT of dry fishes are produced by about 3,000 fishers in eight upazilas of the southern region.
According to sources at the DoF, in drying these fishes, suitable technology is being applied like that of drying in the sun without using insecticide.
Yet the activities of the DoF are about to nosedive due to lack of necessary manpower in the division.
More than 100 posts of granted 170 official posts in 42 upazila offices in six districts are lying vacant; and against 200 granted posts of employees, about 100 ones are working.
Almost all posts of granted seven ones of senior assistant directors are vacant; and of the four granted posts of assistant director, more than one are lying vacant.
Due to this manpower shortage, overall fish farming and production are hampered in entire southern region.
While talking with this correspondent of The Daily Observer, DoF Deputy Director said, "There is endless potential of fish farming in the southern region; we are trying to expand fish farming through state of the art technology; to this end, fish farmers are inspired to shift to rich technology.
"The manpower crisis is regularly informed to the authorities concerned; we hope to overcome this crisis," the DoF official maintained.
