Kuicha or Kuincha, Kunchia fish, Kuchia alias Kuchey Baim or Asian Swamp Eel is a fish belonged to Eel species under Sybrabcgudae family. The scientific name of the fish is Monopterus Kuchia. According to Wildlife (Preservation and Safety) Act, the fish is a preserved species.
This long, serpentine fish is tasty, nourishing and medicinal in quality, valuable, exportable, strong, anti-pollutant, nocturnal and carnivorous. The fish is found in parts of Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Mayanmar.
The Kuchia fish is found in ponds, canals, rivers, beels, rivulets, haor, baor, flood-plains, ditches, shallow water bodies and even in paddy fields during the flood. The fish hunts small fishes, crustaceans, echinoderms, larvae of insects and aquatic invertebrates.
In Bangladesh, Kuchia is not popular as food but it is consumed as delicious food by the aboriginals, Hindus and the Christians. Though not popular locally, the fish has tremendous demand in the world fish market. The fish has a huge demand in the countries like Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, China, Vietnam, Thailand, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Australia and various European countries.
In 2000, the Kuchia has been identified as endangered species by International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Various organisations and people of the country are engaged in research with an increased breeding of Kuchia. They have also succeeded in breeding and rearing of a large number of Kuchia fish on a limited area of water-bodies.
Under the direction of the Chief Researcher Swapon Kumar Basak of Rajshahi University, the research team includes Associate Researcher Alok Kumar Paul, Nazim Uddin, PKSF researcher AM Farhaduzzaman, BKB Researcher Mozibur Rahman and South Korean researcher Usman Atiq. Chief Researcher Swapon Kumar Basak is also working as the Fisheries Officer in Centre for Action Research-Barind and Professor Dr Aktar Hossain of the Dept of Fisheries of RU is the Supervisor of the Research.
At Ramchandrapur area under Boalia Police station one Milon Soren Torun (28) son of Laxman Soren of Rajshahi court area was seen to catch Kuchia fish from the swamp of the area.
He informed Kuchia is very delicious and tasty to eat. He usually catches one to two kgs of Kuchia daily by visiting various swamps and water bodies of Rajshahi city and surrounding areas and sells those at Tk 300 per kg in Court Bazar.
He, however, said he has no idea that Kuchia is a highly endangered and preserved species and catching, selling and eating of Kuchia is banned and a punishable offence.
