46 maunds of hilsa caught in a single net, sold for nearly Tk 5m

A fishing trawler has caught 46 maunds of hilsa in a single net in the Bay of Bengal near Kuakata in Patuakhali.

The fish were sold at Mahipur Fishery Port on Friday for approximately Tk 4.85 million (Tk 48.5 lakh).

The unusually large catch has brought renewed excitement among fishermen in the coastal area after a prolonged period of poor catches.

Alamgir Majhi, the owner of the fishing trawler FB Junaid, was on board when the fish were caught. He said the trawler caught 46 maunds of hilsa on Thursday near the last buoy of Payra Sea Port.

The trawler, loaded with hilsa, reached Mahipur Fishery Port at noon on Friday. The fish were then sold through an auction at a wholesale fish outlet called Manowara Fish.

“It has been nearly five years since I got such a large consignment of hilsa at once. This is great news. Catching 2,200 hilsa in a single net is no small thing. We have suffered losses for a long time, and with such a big catch, we hope to recover some of those losses, ” said Alamgir Hossain, owner of FB Junaid.

Sagir Akon, manager of Manowara Fish, said 24 maunds of the catch consisted of hilsa weighing 1kg or more. They bought those fish at Tk 115,000 per maund, equivalent to Tk 2,875 per kg. The 24 maunds therefore cost Tk 2.76 million.

The remaining 22 maunds consisted of hilsa weighing between 800 and 900 grams. Those were purchased at Tk 95,000 per maund, or Tk 2,375 per kg, bringing the total cost to Tk 2.09 million.

The entire 46-maund catch was therefore purchased for Tk 4.85 million.
Sagir Akon said hilsa prices this year were significantly higher than last year.

“Hilsa prices are very high in the market, so the fishermen who caught these 46 maunds received a good price,” he said.

Apu Saha, senior fisheries officer, Kalapara upazila, said,  “There has been a shortage of hilsa in the sea for quite some time. However, fishermen are still catching varying amounts of hilsa. If the rainfall continues, the catch is likely to increase further.”

Hilsa catches in the sea have declined compared with previous years, with overall production also falling. This has put pressure on fishermen’s livelihoods.

Mohammad Bakhtiar Rahman, a research assistant with the Healthy Ocean project implemented by WCS and WorldFish with funding from the Blue Action Fund, described the large catch as encouraging news for fishermen.

According to Bakhtiar, the catch could give hope to fishermen who spend days and nights at sea. However, he cautioned that such a large catch in a single day should not be considered an indicator of an overall abundance of hilsa.

He said the situation could be properly assessed later through continued monitoring and scientific data on fish availability.

He also stressed that maintaining the positive trend would require greater awareness among fishermen, avoiding fishing during the breeding season and ensuring the continued implementation of conservation measures.

Apu Saha, senior fisheries officer of Kalapara upazila, told Prothom Alo that hilsa availability in the sea had been declining for some time. However, fishermen were still catching hilsa in varying quantities.

“If the rainfall continues, more hilsa will be caught,” he said. “The greater the volume of hilsa caught, the more fishermen, fish traders and others involved in the hilsa trade will benefit.”