Drive against violating fishing ban on Meghna

Barishal Correspondent :

A joint operation on the Meghna River in Hizla upazila of Barishal district led to the detention of 27 fishermen for illegally catching hilsa in violation of the 22-day fishing ban.

Around 2.2 million metres of illegal fishing nets were seized and burned, said Upazila Fisheries Officer Muhammad Alam.

On Monday, the Upazila Administration and the Department of Fisheries carried out the operation in the Meghna River and in canals adjacent to Shantir Bazar, Char Bausia, and Bombai Nagar in Hizla, with the assistance of the Bangladesh Army, Coast Guard, and Naval Police.

Later, a mobile court led by Executive Magistrate and UNO of Hizla, Elias Shikder, fined 25 of the detainees between Tk 1,000 and Tk 10,000 each. Two minors were released.

“All the seized nets have been destroyed by burning, and the confiscated hilsa were distributed among local madrasas,” said the UNO.

“The fishermen used to hide in the narrow canals during previous drives. This time, we deployed our team in advance.

As soon as they entered the canal around 8am, we caught them red-handed,” said Muhammad Alam.

The drive was jointly led by Senior Warrant Officer of the Coast Guard, Maruful Islam, and Senior Upazila Fisheries Officer, Muhammad Alam.

During the operation, 27 people were arrested for violating the government’s fishing ban, while 2.2 million metres of illegal fishing nets and 12 kilogrammes of hilsa fish were seized.