Haor region of Kishoreganj has a lot of water bodies which produce a lot of fish. Because of this, fish production here is upward. According to the sources of the district fisheries office, the target of fish production in the district in the last fiscal year 2020-21 was 70 thousand tons. In contrast, 83 thousand tons have been produced. Apart from this, the target of fish production in the current fiscal year 2021-22 was 72 thousand tons. 85 thousand tons have been produced.
Meanwhile, along with the total production of the district, the fish production of Haor has increased. According to sources, 50 thousand tons of fish have been produced naturally in the fiscal year 2020-21. 51 thousand tons have been produced in the current fiscal year 2021-22. Due to increase in fish production in Haor region, natural fish production has increased this year compared to last year.
According to the district fisheries office and related sources, about 5 percent of Bangladesh's fish demand is met from the Haor in the region. For this reason, Haor region of Kishoreganj is also called as one of the fisheries of Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, 33 thousand tons of farmed fish were produced in the district in the fiscal year 2020-21. In the financial year 2021-22, it has increased to 34 thousand tons. According to official and private accounts, the district has 33,528 ponds, 147 canals, 26 rivers, 347 bils and 54 haors. Apart from this there are 22 bill nurseries and 11 sanctuaries.
According to the District Fisheries Office, lack of availability of quality spawn, lack of good fish farming practices or management, low number of commercial farms, construction of unplanned dams, indiscriminate harvesting, non-compliance with fisheries conservation laws, inadequate training, lack of administrative capacity of fisheries officers to implement fisheries laws. Due to this, there is a hindrance in the production. If these obstacles can be overcome, the concerned people also think that the total production of fish in Haor region and district will increase.
Agrajatra Fishery Cooperative Society General Secretary Khairul Islam said, which received the Prime Minister's Medal for fish production in 2016, said that a lot of shelters are needed to protect fisheries. Kishoreganj has 11 sanctuaries. If large numbers of refuges are created, extinct fish will return.
Khairul Islam also said, "Although our Kishoreganj is one of the largest in the country in fish production, there is no laboratory for fish treatment here. Many fishermen hunt spawning fish. They are very cunning. If we can stop them, we will go further.
Non-governmental organizations working in Haor and people on the shore claim that increasing the number of fish sanctuaries will improve the quality of life of the people of Haor and meet the needs of the entire country and export them abroad. But before that, Haor has to be freed from the hands of the unscrupulous gang, they said.
Fishermen complain that a class of unscrupulous people, using symbolic names in the fisheries cooperative societies, take the lease of the ponds and enjoy the benefits of the ponds under cover. He became the owner of the palace in exchange for money. In this the actual fishermen are deprived of the dividend. For this reason, they called for the leasing of water bodies among the real fishermen for the development of fisheries.
Apart from this, they also think that if fishing is stopped every year from Baisakh to Ashad, these three months will increase the reproduction of fish to a large extent. At the same time, they called for enforcement and strengthening of fisheries laws and prevention of use of chicken droppings, dung and compost.
District Fisheries Officer Ripon Kumar Pal said the fish produced in Kishoreganj is surplus compared to the demand. Kishoreganj has a role in meeting the fish needs of the country. Fisheries Act is being implemented to increase natural fish production. It is important to set up shelters.
The district fisheries officer also said, "We are giving various trainings to the farmers to increase awareness." We are trying to make sure that the Jalmahal is getting real fishermen i.e. registered fishermen or not.
