Home ›› 19 Aug 2022 ›› Nation
The Gopalganj District Fisheries Office under the Department of Fisheries has set a target to produce 100,000 tonnes of fish by 2041 in the district.
The department has taken the initiative with an aim to build a developed and prosperous Bangladesh under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The fisheries office reports that fish farming is the second-largest source of income for the people of the district, as it is surrounded by various water bodies including haors, baors, ponds, and beels.
The department is encouraging farmers to cultivate highly reproductive fish in this district.
Farmers are benefiting from cultivating varieties of carp, koi, shing, pabda and gulsha tangra. Many are getting into fish farming after seeing the success of other farmers in this district.
Local sources said the fortune of fish farmers and fishermen in Gopalganj has changed after opening of the Padma Bridge on 25 June last.
Due to the distance, many reported that they sold their fish to different parts of the country through other fishmongers, which resulted in the fish farmers receiving only half the price they expected.
But, now the scenario has changed.
The fishermen of the district are seeing a ray of hope, and expecting over Tk 200 crore profits per year.
According to the District Fisheries Office sources, there are 229 beels and wetlands, 10 rivers, six baor and 334 canals in five upazilas of the district.
From these sources, about 10,000 tonnes of puti, tangra, shail, magur, koi, shing, taki, khalisha, gajar, rui, katla, boal, ayir, shrimp, hilsa, nandel and other fishes are produced every year.
In 19,350 privately owned and 132 government-owned ponds in the district, 17,158 farmers farm and produce 31,200 tonnes of rui, catla, mrigel, pangas, tilapia, grasscarp, koi, shing, pabda, and gulsha tangra.
In addition, around 1,000 farmers produce about 1,713 tonnes of shrimp in 2,375 shrimp farms per year.
A total of 41,913 tonnes of fish, worth around Tk 819 crore, are produced in the district every year.
District Fisheries Officer Biswajit Bairagi said the district’s environment is favourable for fish farming. Large areas of Gopalganj Sadar, Tungipara, Kotalipara, Muksudpur and Kashiani upazilas are wetlands that remain submerged for seven months every year.
“By increasing fish farming in those areas, we can increase fish production to 1 lakh tonnes by 2041. After meeting the domestic need, we can also export it,” he said.
He added that the fisheries department has plans to start processing and marketing fish feed for the farmer’s benefit. He expects Gopalganj will become a fishery-centric economic zone by 2041.
Farmer Ikram Ali Sikder, 58, of Tetulia village of Ulpur union, said he has earned Tk 4 lakh from fish farming in the first six months of 2022, from tw ponds of two acres.
“Last year, I earned Tk 16 lakh by cultivating different varieties of domestic fishes in five ponds. Koi, Shing and Gulsha Tangra are more profitable than carps,” he said.
Md Yadul Sikdar, 35, a fish trader from Korpara village of Gopalganj Sadar upazila, said, “All freshwater fishes in our area are nutritious and tasty. These fishes are in demand in the markets of Faridpur, Dhaka and other districts.”
Sadek Ahmed, 35, of Ulpur village of Sadar upazila, said, “I began fish farming two years ago seeing the success of other farmers. I expect to make hefty profits from farming various types of fish in my 5-acre enclosure.”
According to Biswajit Bairagi, the district fisheries office trains and advises the fish farmers regularly as well as provides them with fishing equipment.
“Marginalised communities are being involved in fish farming in government reservoirs through cooperative societies. We strive to achieve the target by increasing fish production through maximum utilisation of wetlands,” he added.
