Govt food aid eludes 63,193 fishermen in Cox's Bazar

As long as 28 days have already elapsed since the ban on fishing in the sea was enforced still the 63,193 registered fishermen in Cox's Bazar have not yet received the VGF food assistance meant for them.

As the ban is in force, the fishermen are unable to catch fish in the sea. They are passing days in subhuman conditions as they cannot make a living. In such a situation, the poor fishing families are in extreme trouble.

While talking to the fishermen on Wednesday, this correspondent came to know that a good majority of the fishermen families were facing severe hardship for food shortage.

Many of the families are passing days half-fed or unfed. For want of work, some fishermen are whiling away the time sitting on the embankment or sandbanks and repairing fishing nets. Many have temporarily changed their professions to make income.

The 58-day government ban on fishing in the Bay of Bengal and Naf River came into effect on April 15.

Although 28 days of the ban have already gone by, almost all fishermen families in Cox's Bazar have not yet received the government-allocated rice as of Wednesday (May 14). According to the government rules, 86 kg of rice is supposed to be distributed to each of the fishermen during the ban.

At least 12,000 fishermen families in Teknaf coast have not yet received the government-allocated rice.

Fishermen Rahman Azhar and Mujib Ullah of Teknaf Shahparir Dwip and Jaliapara said that they have not been able to fish in the sea and Naf River for five to six months in fear of shooting and kidnap by Myanmar's armed group Arakan Army.

Myanmar's armed group has already abducted more than 200 fishermen while they were fishing in the sea.

Most recently, on April 8, the Arakan Army picked up 23 fishermen along with four fishing boats at gunpoint from Bangladesh waters in the Bay of Bengal near St. Martin's Island.

Teknaf Fishing Boat Owners' Association General Secretary Md. Abul Kalam said that although more than 100 Bangladeshi fishermen who were kidnapped at different times were brought back recently following intervention of the BGB, many are still missing.

On the one hand, the families of the kidnapped fishermen are worried and anxious, and on the other hand, they are disappointed at not receiving the government-allocated rice.

Abdul Amin, a trawler owner of Shahparir Dwip, and Abdul Mannan, a UP member of Ward No. 7 of the local Sabrang Union, said that the fishermen have already suffered because they have not been able to catch fish for a long time. At least 12,000 fishermen in the upazila are desperate because they have not received the government-allocated rice.

Rahim Uddin, a fisherman from Kutubjum Union in Moheshkhali, said, "We have not received the government-allocated rice yet."

When contacted, the Upazila Fisheries Office sources said that the government allocated rice has not arrived yet.

Last year, the allocated rice was available even two weeks after the ban began. Meanwhile, hundreds of fishermen in Hoanok, Matarbari, Boro Moheshkhali, Choto Moheshkhali, Gorakhata, and Shaplapur unions in the upazila are living subhuman life.

According to the information provided by the Upazila Fisheries Department, the number of fishermen in Moheshkhali is about 28,000, of which 15,832 are registered with the Fisheries Department.

Moheshkhali Upazila Fisheries Officer Shahadul Islam said that the rice allocated by the government for the ban-affected fishermen has not reached their hands as yet. When the rice arrives, it will be distributed among the fishermen.

The number of registered fishermen in Kutubdia Upazila is more than 9,000. There are also more than 23,000 registered fishermen in Chakaria and Pekua upazilas. No one has received the government allocated rice.

Cox's Bazar Fishing Boat Owners' Association General Secretary Md Delwar Hossain said that there are about 128,000 fishermen working in 6,000 small and large trawlers in the district. Around 90 per cent of the fishermen could not catch fish in the sea due to natural disasters and hostile environment in the three months before the 58-day ban began.

The fishermen are not getting the rice meant for free distribution among them though the government ban will end on June 12.

According to the District Fisheries Department, 86 kg rice will be distributed to each of the 63,193 fishermen affected by the 58-day ban in two phases from April 15 to June 11-split into 56 kg in the first phase and 30 kg in the second phase.

Cox's Bazar District Fisheries Officer Md Badruzzaman said that there is some delay in the delivery of government-allocated rice. As soon as the allocated rice is received, it will be delivered to the fishermen as soon as possible.

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