Egg-laden fish at risk as thieves pillage Halda River

Illegal fish harvesters have descended on the Halda River as the breeding season begins, leaving fish and dolphins at high risk.

Despite multiple raids, the authorities have failed to stop the thieves from killing the egg-laden fish with chemicals.

Livebearer carp fish swim to the Halda, a natural breeding ground for them from April to June. Egg-laden fish began to appear in the Halda from mid-April, said fish egg collectors Ashu Barua and Kamal Saudagar.

“The catchers began to crowd the river after the egg-laden fish appeared. They set nets in the river after dark to catch the fish,” said Ashu Barua.

A group of 30 illegal fish catchers went fishing at 10.45 pm on Apr 18 braving the rain and thunderstorm at Kantajar Bazar in Hathazari. They fled the scene leaving their nets after the local administration raided the area. The authorities destroyed 500 metres of nets.

“We seized a 12kg egg-laden Katal fish caught in the net in the Kagtia canal on Apr 30 and released it back to the river. We also confiscated 400-foot long net,” said Rowshangir Alam, volunteer of the Integrated Development Foundation.

FISH, DOLPHIN CAUGHT IN NET

The thieves put bamboo poles near the riverbank during the ebb and add baits to attract the fish; the net is then attached to the poles during the tide. The egg-laden fish gets caught in the net when it swims near the riverbank in search of food. The thieves set a different type of fishing nets in the middle of the river which catches dolphins and the fish.

During the breeding season, the egg-laden fish are mostly found from the opening of Sattar canal to Ramdas Munshi Haat, a 10km stretch known as a breeding ground.

The illegal fish catchers are rampant during the breeding season in three hotspots: Hathazari, Rowzan and Fatikchhari -- all close to the river.

“We are continuing to raid those areas to prevent illegal fishing during the breeding season,” said Md Nazmul Huda Rony, senior fisheries officer.

RESIDENTS ARE THE ILLEGAL CATCHERS

Those catching fishes illegally at night do not come from far, but from nearby villages, said Manzurul Kibria, a professor of zoology at Chattogram University. 

“That’s why PKSF and IDF created a volunteer group of 40 residents to prevent illegal fishing,” he said.

They always raid the river whenever informed of any group catching fish, besides their regular drives, said IDF volunteer Rowshangir Alam. “Even then we can’t curb the illegal fishing.”

“The illegal fish catchers are playing hide and seek with the police. They set the fishnets at the dead of night. They become active whenever the raids are relaxed. This can be stopped only when the locals are aware of the issue,” said Pijush Provakar, senior fisheries officer in Rowzan Upazila.

The catchers started to use ‘poison’ or chemical as a new way of fishing this year. They use a ‘chemical’ to reduce oxygen in the water in a certain part of the river; then they pick the fish with a net when they float on the surface for oxygen, said Prof Kibria.

The illicit harvesting of fish can be curbed only when the local people, fish egg collectors, fishermen and public representatives become aware of the issue, said the authorities.