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Jhatka preservation hampered at Char Fasson for absence of monitoring

Published : Wednesday, 21 February, 2024 at 12:00 AM  Count : 237
Shipu Farazi
CHAR FASSON, BHOLA, Feb 20: Manpower and financial  crises are hampering Jhatka preservation activities in Char Fasson Upazila of the district.

According to field sources, at present, defying ban on Hilsa fry catching is going on in a free style in the Meghna and Tentulia rivers in the upazila. This breeding season, mother Hilsas laid eggs at a large scale. That is why number of Jhatka is huge in these rivers. But there is no adequate initiative to preserve Jhatka.

In the absence of necessary monitoring, Jhatka is being sold publicly in local haats and bazaars in different areas of the upazila.

Due to unabated Jhatka killing, the Hilsa production target may not be achieved.

Despite instructions for officials and employees of the Department of Fisheries (DoF) to help grow fry to big Hilsa, the initiative is going to bog down due to manpower and financial crises.

A number of fisher leaders at Samrajghat said, there is strong instructions for officials  and employees of the DoF to conduct Jhatka preservation drive during eight month-long (Nov-June) Jhatka preservation time. But there is hardly any drive in rivers.

At least 300 metric tons (mt) of Jhatka are caught per day with illegal nets.

According to sources at the DoF-Char Fasson, there are about 40,000 listed fishermen in Char Fasson Upazila including 25,060 ones registered by the DoF. Of these, 16,01 ones are under special allocation of the government. Allocated rice of two months for the listed fishers have already come; these will be distributed among fishers in phases.

District fishers organization leaders said, the DoF has been showing Hilsa increase by showing record production of Jhatka; but in the full season, Hilsas are not available in the rivers. Due to crisis, prices of Hilsas have gone beyond capacities of the middle-income people, they added.

A recent visit to Samraj Fishing Ghat  found huge Jhatka; wholesalers were wrapping fry of different fishes and Jhatka in boxes with ice; these fry and Jhatka were so small that over 100 pieces of them will make one kilogram (kg); one kg was selling at Tk 300 at the retail price; the Jhatka was caught with illegal nets.

At Manuddin Fishing Ghat of Hazaraganj Union in the upazila, it was seen: A fisher of that Ghat Md Jahir Majji has got 17 haali (four pieces) Jhatka, 7.5 haali Tolla (a little bigger than Jhatka) and one haali medium Hilsas; his Jhatka price was hawked at Tk 180 per haali, Tolla Tk 560, and medium Hilsa at Tk 2,450: the total price stands at Tk 8,760.

Warehouse Owner Md Kabir Hossain said, "If these fishes were matured, their prices would be at least Tk 50,000. But we have got into disarray for giving Dadan. That is why whatever fishers bring, we put these on sale."

A fisheries official of the DoF requesting anonymity  said, the required manpower for monitoring vast water area of Jhatka preservation is not available; four posts are lying vacant in this upazila fisheries office; the office is running somehow with four men.

It needs one speedboat and one speedy trawler in one upazila to conduct drive, the official added. There are only two speedboats in the entire district. Besides, there is crisis of fuel.

It can be possible to make 100 per cent success in drive by taking trawlers from fisher-warehouse. Financial allocation is almost absent for continuing eight month-long campaign, the official added.

According to DoF-Bhola sources, it costs at least Taka one lakh to conduct drives in seven upazilas daily; in the last two and a half months, no allocation is reached.



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