“The clerk’s cow exists only in the ledger, not in the barn” — the old Bengali proverb might have been written for Jhenaidah’s Sailkupa Mini Fish Hatchery. The hatchery’s fish-fry production has been shut down for a full 11 years. Yet government records still show 37 kilograms of fry produced there this year, at a reported cost of 127,000 taka. Over the past three years, roughly 1 million taka has been allocated to the hatchery across various expense categories. A visit to the site, however, found no production activity of any kind under way.
The mini fish hatchery was built in 1982 in the Court Para area of Sailkupa upazila town to help boost fish production. Having sat idle for years, the facility is now largely abandoned. A retired employee who left the job two years ago is currently living in the hatchery’s office room with his family.
Local residents say no fry production has taken place at the hatchery for roughly 11 years. Yet according to government figures, 37 kilograms of fry were produced there this year, at a reported cost of 127,000 taka — a discrepancy that has prompted local residents to question the official production records.
Local resident Farhad Hossain said: “We haven’t seen any production activity at the hatchery for a long time. If it were running, local fish farmers would benefit. But if production is being shown on government paper despite it being shut down all this time, the matter needs to be investigated.”
Another resident, Shariful Islam, said: “The hatchery is now essentially abandoned. If it were operating regularly, there would be visible activity here. But in reality, there’s nothing going on. The public deserves clarity on how and where this government money is actually being spent.”
According to official figures, roughly 1 million taka has been allocated over the past three years for the hatchery’s repairs, worker wages, fish feed, computer equipment and other expenses. But questions have been raised over the lack of a clear accounting of how and where that money was actually spent.
Local residents allege that government funds are being spent based on production figures shown only on paper, with no actual production activity taking place. They are demanding an investigation into the hatchery’s allocations and expenditures.
Swapan Bagchi, president of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB) in Jhenaidah, said: “Government money is public money. If a project isn’t functioning, the allocation and spending of money there year after year needs to be examined. The hatchery’s allocations, expenditures and the fry production shown on paper need to be investigated to establish the real picture.”
Asked about the fry-production figures appearing in government records, Sailkupa Upazila Fisheries Officer Imran Hossain said: “An initiative will be taken to restart fry production activities at the hatchery.” However, he was unable to provide specific information on how much funding the hatchery had received in recent years or how it had been spent.
According to Fisheries Department sources, the hatchery’s operations shut down completely around 1986, not long after it was built in 1982. The Fisheries Department restarted fry production there for a period in 2015, but that too shut down due to staff shortages and a lack of proper management. All activity at the hatchery has effectively remained suspended ever since.
With no production activity on the ground for years, yet government records showing fry production and allocations across various categories, questions have been raised over the proper use of public funds. Local residents are demanding an investigation into the hatchery’s allocations, expenditures and the fry-production figures shown on paper in recent years, in order to establish the true picture.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report