The government has extended the duration of a ban on catching mother Ilish to 15 days – up from the existing 11 days – to ensure safe spawning and protect mother fish.
On June 25, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock published a gazette, signed by its secretary Shelina Afroza, regarding the decision.
According to the amendment made to the Protection and Conservation of Fish Rules 1985, catching all kinds of fish in Ilish spawning grounds would remain prohibited from three days before and 11 days after the first full moon – as well as the day of full moon – in the Bangla month of Ashwin (October) each year.
The newly extended ban was made based on long-term observation of fish spawning habits during the specific season, said Ilish Juvenile Conservation Project Director Zahid Habib.
Increasing the banning period for four extra days would certainly increase the number of Ilish fish in the country, he added.
Other previous government initiatives include a ban on fishing during the breeding season in five Ilish sanctuaries.
In 2003-04, the government set up the sanctuaries: a strip between Shatnol and Char Alexander in Meghna River; the Shahbazpur channel of Meghna River; Tentulia River adjacent to Bhola; and the Andharmanik River near the Bay of Bengal.
Another major sanctuary is also located in Shariatpur in the estuary of the rivers Padma and Meghna; this place was given the status in 2010-11.
These are known as sanctuaries because catching Hilsha in these places are prohibited during the two breeding seasons. For the Andharmanik sanctuary, the breeding season starts in November and ends in January. For the remaining four, the season spans March-April.
The national fish of Bangladesh contributes about 12% of the total fish production and about 1% of the GDP.
Production of hilsha in the country was 2.99 lakh tonne in FY2008-09; around 3.13 lakh tonne in FY2009-10, around 3.40 lakh tonne in 2010-11, around 3.465 lakh tonne in 2011-12, around 3.51 lakh tonne in 2012-13, and 3.85 lakh tonne in 2013-14.
