Eleven fishermen were sent to jail by mobile courts for flouting a fishing ban at Shibaloy and Daulatpur upazilas of Manikganj on Saturday.
The mobile courts seized 150,000 meters of current nets and 125 kg of ilish during the raid. They also collected Tk88,000 as fines.
The 22-day fishing ban began on October 7, prohibiting the catching, selling and transportation of ilish during the period to ensure the safe spawning of mother ilish.
Shibaloy Upazila Assistant Commissioner (land) and Executive Magistrate Md Anisur Rahman Khan, along with his team, conducted a raid along the Padma and Jamuna rivers in the upazila in the morning yesterday. They detained 11 fishermen and fined them Tk53,000.
The AC (land) said that the mobile court detained 23 people initially for flouting the fishing ban but later released 12 of them as they were minors.
They seized 50,000 meters of current nets and 15 kg of ilish in the raid. The nets were destroyed and the fishes were distributed at a local madrasa.
Meanwhile, in Doulatpur, Assistant Commissioner (land) and Executive Magistrate Arnab Malakar’s mobile court began operations on Friday night and fined seven fishermen Tk35,000 for flouting the fishing ban.
The mobile court continued its operations till 9am on Saturday and seized 100,000 meters of current nets along with 110 kg of ilish. The nets were destroyed and the fishes were distributed in four madrasas.
The mobile courts said that they will continue such operations during the 22-day ban.