Drives on the Arial Khan river in Barishal Sadar upazila have been stepped up to protect mother hilsa and ensure safe breeding. About 30,000 metres of illegal current net were seized and destroyed in a drive from 6am to 11am on Wednesday. A mobile court fined one person Tk 15,000. Hilsa were also seized and given to a local orphanage.
The drive was led by Barishal Sadar upazila nirbahi officer Mosa. Farida Sultana. It stressed stopping illegal fishing and keeping hilsa breeding undisturbed.
According to the upazila administration, one case was filed through the mobile court during the drive on the Arial Khan. One person was fined Tk 15,000, which was collected on the spot. About 30,000 metres of current net used for illegal fishing in the river were seized and destroyed.
Farida Sultana urged fishermen to follow the government’s directions on protecting mother hilsa. To keep breeding undisturbed, she said, they must stay away from all kinds of fishing in the river during the ban. Fishermen, fish traders and everyone else concerned must act responsibly to raise hilsa production and conserve this important fish resource for future generations.
Strict legal action will be taken against anyone who fishes in defiance of the government’s directions during the protection period, she added, and called on fishermen to be aware and to help the administration enforce the ban.
Upazila senior fisheries officer Md Jamal Hossain and members of the Barishal battalion Ansar assisted in the drive.
Such drives will continue on the rivers to enforce the government’s 22-day ban, which protects mother hilsa during the main breeding season.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report