<i> Jatka catching on defying ban </i>
Rab seizes 50 maunds of hilsa fry in Patuakhali
Large current nets set in Tentulia River bear testimony to a section of fishermen's utter callousness about the authorities' two-month ban on catching young hilsa. Inset, authorities distribute huge jatka, seized by Rapid Action Battalion on Wednesday night, among representatives of a few orphanages and madrasas in Patuakhali yesterday.Photo: STAR
A group of fishermen have continued catching jatka (young hilsa) ignoring a ban during March-April on 320 kilometre-long rivers and water bodies in Patuakhali and Bhola districts. Jatka caught at different points of Tetulia, Paira, Lohalia, Ramnabad, Buragourango, Agunmukha and Andharmanik rivers and adjacent areas in different upazilas of Patuakhali is openly selling in local markets for Tk 150 to 200 a kg. A team from Rapid Action Battalion (Rab)-8 of Patuakhali camp seized 50 maunds of jatka from a truck at Labekhali ferryghat on Patuakhali-Barisal highway on Wednesday midnight. The jatka loaded truck was going to Dhaka from Galachipa, said Major Nuruzzaman, company commander of Rab-8. At about 10:00am yesterday, the seized jatka was distributed among different organisations including Patuakhali Shishu Paribar (government-run orphanage), a few private-run orphanages, madrasas and some poor people in presence of Executive Magistrate Ebadat Hossain at the Rab camp in Patuakhali town. To ensure smooth breeding of hilsa, the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock in 2000 ordered a ban on catching hilsa on 320 km-long water bodies in the coastal districts of Patuakhali and Bhola from March 1 to April 30 every year, said sources at Patuakhali district fisheries office. During recent visits this correspondent saw some fishermen on trawlers and wooden boats catching jatka in Tetulia River. "What will we do? How will we run our family? Many of us live on fishing and we have to catch jatka as there is no alternative," said Abul Kalam, a fisherman of Dhulia area in Baufal upazila. "We are conducting operation against jatka catching in the district to discourage fishermen during the ban period," said Faruq Hossain, survey officer for Patuakhali district fisheries office.
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