58-day ban on fishing of hilsa, other fish in Bay of Bengal

The Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock has announced a ban on all types of fishing in the Bay of Bengal for 58 days from April 15 to June 11 to protect commercially important fish during their breeding season.

Advisor Farida Akhter announced the decision at a media briefing highlighting the ministry’s activities for the past six months and plans for Ramadan on Monday.

"The 'Mother Hilsa Conservation Programme' during the main breeding season of the hilsa has been successfully observed for a total of 22 days from Oct 13 to Nov 3, 2024. Initiatives were taken to conserve egg-laying hilsa during the three days before and after the full moon and the new moon,” she said.

“During this period, the Department of Fisheries issued a notification banning the harvesting, transportation, storage, marketing, purchase, sale and distribution of hilsa in rivers and seas across the country for 22 days. Due to this initiative, hilsa production has increased 104.65 percent since 2006.”

She continued: “The Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute has assessed the results of the Mother Hilsa Conservation Programme from Oct 13 to Nov 3. The overall reproductive success rate of the 22-day ban on mother hilsa conservation in 2024 is 52.5 per cent, and 440 million jatkas or renu [juvenile hilsa] have been added to the hilsa family, which is 36.6 million more than last year.”

“In 2024, the amount of juvenile fish caught per attempt has increased by one-and-a-half-fold compared to the previous year, which indicates reproductive success. The experimental net found 91 per cent of hilsa spawn, which indicates the success of reproduction during the ban. At the same time, the spawn of other fish have also been found to have increased at a significant rate, meaning that aquatic biodiversity has been preserved.”

In order to increase the production of hilsa and other fish in marine waters, fishing of any kind of fish and shrimp, crab, lobster, and other crustaceans by all types of fishing vessels will be prohibited for 65 days from May 20 to Jul 23 every year, according to the advisor.

 “As a result, there is a record 12.78 per cent increase in harvesting of marine fish resources. However, as this period is not coordinated with neighbouring countries, fishermen of neighbouring countries are taking advantage of Bangladesh’s fishing ban. Therefore, demands are being raised by fishing organisations and fishermen to coordinate the ban period at different times.”

A technical committee was formed consisting of the Department of Fisheries and Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute and other stakeholders and fisheries experts, she said.

“In consideration of the sustainable exploitation of marine fisheries resources and the interests of stakeholders -- since the breeding season of most commercially important fish in the Bay of Bengal is from April to June -- a decision has been taken to halt all types of fishing in the Bay of Bengal for a total of 58 days from Apr 15 to Jun 11. That is, from now on, the prohibited period for harvesting hilsa and other fish in marine waters has been increased to 58 days.”

"In order to preserve indigenous fish in the haor wetlands, a recommendation has also been made on banning fishing for 20 days or a maximum of one month from May 15 to Jun 14, in view of the influx of water into the haor."

Stating that the supply of hilsa will increase further in the future, she said, "Hilsa is mainly a marine and migratory fish. It migrates from brackish water to freshwater rivers for breeding and laying eggs. After breeding, it returns to the sea. It lays eggs more or less throughout the year. However, the breeding reaches its peak in October and [the first week of November].

"Hilsa fish are found in rivers and streams all year round due to their migration from the sea to freshwater rivers. Again, hilsa is found in the sea at all times of the year. Due to this life cycle, harvested hilsa is available in the market all year round [except during the hilsa fishing ban]. The supply is lowest in the market during winter [December-February]. Currently, as it is not the main season for hilsa harvesting, the supply of hilsa in the market is low. However, the supply will gradually increase from April."