Loan pressure forces fishermen to catch mother hilsa

BAUPHAL, PATUAKHALI, Oct 19: Although a 22-day ban on fishing is in force, a festival of slaughtering mother hilsa is underway in the Tentulia River of Bauphal Upazila in Patuakhali. 

Hundreds of fishermen are traversing the river in trawls in broad daylight. Children and adolescents are being used for unhindered fishing. Although a ban on collecting instalments by various banks and NGOs has been imposed for 22 days, it is not being implemented. Under pressure to pay instalments, fishermen are being forced to go to the river to catch fish.

Some fishermen allege that taking advantage of the pressure of instalment payment and the lax operations of the administration, a group of fishermen are indiscriminately destroying mother hilsa in Tentulia. As a result, the government's hilsa conservation programme is on the verge of collapse. Conscious quarters and fisherfolk have demanded a strict operation to protect mother hilsa.

According to sources at the Upazila Fisheries Department, the mother hilsa conservation operation that began on 8 October will continue until 29 October. To ensure safe breeding of hilsa, operations by the Naval Police and Fisheries Department are continuing in the Tentulia River. As of Sunday, 29 people have been arrested for catching mother hilsa and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. Some 30 thousand metres of nets have been seized. Of them, about 12 children and adolescents were arrested and released after taking bond signatures.

Even so, the picture of the Tentulia River is grim. From Dhulia launch ghat to Bagi Tulatla and from South Charwadel to Char Rasaheb, a festival of hilsa slaughter is underway across the river. Hundreds of fishermen are freely engaged in catching mother hilsa. It seems as if the hilsa catching season is on.

Around 8am on Sunday, fishermen were seen catching hilsa in hundreds of boats at the Charbyaret point of the Tentulia River. The hilsa slaughter continued unhindered past morning until 1pm. The unscrupulous fishermen returned to the ghat safely after catching fish. However, during this long period, no team of fisheries or naval police came on operation in the Charbyaret area. Even though the matter of unhindered fishing was reported to the Upazila Fisheries Department over mobile phone, they did not come.

On the spot, it was seen that local Juba Dal leader Md Abbas Farazi, 38, was leading the hilsa slaughter in the Charbyaret area. Under his leadership, hundreds of fishermen set out in trawls to catch fish in the river. When asked about catching fish defying the government ban, the Juba Dal leader Abbas became furious.

Around 2pm on Saturday, about 50 trawls set out in a group to catch fish at the Dhulia point of the Tentulia river. No patrol team of the fisheries department patrolled the Dhulia point from morning until 3:30pm to implement the mother hilsa catching ban operation.

Around 1:30pm the same day, more than a hundred fishing trawls were seen at the mouth of the Tentulia River in the Charwadel area of Chandradwip Union. Among them, nets were being cast from some trawls, nets were being pulled up in others. Again, some were returning to the ghat after catching fish. A frenzy of hilsa catching was underway at the mouth of the river.

Local people said that more hilsa is always caught at the mouth of South Charwadel of the Tentulia river. For this reason, patrolling should be strengthened here during the ban period. However, not much patrolling is seen here. Around 9am, members of the fisheries and naval police patrolled for some time once.

President of the Upazila Fishers’  Association Md Babul Byapari said, 'Hilsa cannot be protected this way. This operation is a thief-police operation. On one hand fish are being caught, on the other hand a nominal operation is going on. There is no benefit in this. Strict operations must be carried out so that unscrupulous fishermen do not dare to go to the river.' He said that instalment collection must be stopped during the ban period. 

Fishermen have made nets by taking loans from various NGOs including Grameen Bank, Asha, Brac, Uddipan and Padakkhep. Although the upazila administration has issued letters directing suspension of instalment collection for 22 days, the organisations are not complying. Rather, senior officials of Grameen Bank and other NGOs are forcing field workers to collect instalments by sending them to the field. As a result, fishermen are being forced to go to the river under instalment pressure. However, Mazharul Islam, manager of the Patuakhali zone of Grameen Bank, said, 'We have not received any letter from the administration to suspend instalments.'

Upazila Senior Fisheries Officer MM Parvez said, 'We have continued regular operations in the river. However, in conducting operations in one area of a vast river, there is a lack of necessary manpower and modern vessels. Letters have been given to the NGOs to suspend instalment collection. But they are not complying. This is encouraging fishermen further in catching mother hilsa.'

Asked about the matter, Upazila Nirbahi Officer Saleh Ahmed said, 'Operations are ongoing. Some problems are being faced as law enforcement forces are engaged in security of puja mandaps. However, operations will be strengthened soon.'