A 65-day prohibition on all forms of fishing, including ilish, in the Bay of Bengal will begin from Saturday to try and preserve the fish stock and boost their breeding.
The ban will remain in effect until July 23, 2023.
The government has enforced this annual ban on sea fishing since 2019 to increase the country's marine fishery resources. Prior to this, the ban, established in 2015, was exclusively applicable to large trawlers.
The coast guard and local authorities are set to enforce stringent actions against those who defy the ban and set out to sea.
Biswajit Kumar Dev, the fisheries officer for the Barguna district, made it clear that all types of fishing, transportation, and storage are strictly prohibited in the country's marine waters during the ban.
The fisheries department assured that each registered fisherman will receive 86kg of rice during the ban period which will benefit approximately 49,000 registered fishermen in the Patuakhali district and 27,277 fishermen in the Barguna district.
However, fishermen and traders have voiced their frustration over the recurring fishing bans throughout the year.
They have just recovered from a week of inactivity due to Cyclone Mocha, and now this ban will cost them heavily, they feared.
They are also demanding action against the intrusion of Indian fishermen into the Bay of Bengal during the ban.
Fisherman Rahman Majhi of Alipur said during this ban, fishermen from neighbouring countries infiltrate the Bay of Bengal and deplete their fishing resources.
Saifuddin Munshi, a fisherman from the Nijshibbaria area of Mahipur, expressed his frustration at the ban, which came just days after they had sought shelter from Cyclone Mocha and were preparing to resume their fishing activities.
Abdullah Khan, a fisherman from the coastal Pathorghata upazila of Barguna district, echoed this sentiment, saying that the ban was put in place just as they were ready to return to sea after Cyclone Mocha.
Barguna's fishermen are now returning to shore with their nets and trawlers and this ban will make their life harder, he added.
Kalapara Upazila Senior Fisheries Officer Apu Saha stated that he would convey the fishermen's demands to higher authorities.
Golam Mostafa Chowdhury, president of Barguna District Fishing Trawler Owners' Association, criticized the government's fisherman registry.
He said that although 150,000 people are engaged in the fishing profession along the Barguna coast, the government's list only includes 37,074 individuals.
