GAIBANDHA, OCT 08, 2019 (BSS) – A total of 3522 fishermen families of four upazilas in the district will get 70.44 tons of rice as food assistance from the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock very soon to pass Hilsa ban period without any food crisis.
According to sources the government imposed a 22-day ban on the netting, selling and marketing, importing, transporting and exchanging Hilsa across the country that will come into effect from zero hour of October 09.
The aim of the restriction is to ensure safe spawning, protect the breeding environment and shelter the mother Hilsa from any disturbance from October 09 to 30, sources said.
As the fishermen of Sundarganj, Sadar, Fulchhari and Shaghata upazilas would remain refrained from catching the Hilsa fishes in the river of Brahmaputra, Jamuna, and Teesta here from October 09 to 30, the ministry allocated rice for the poor fishermen here to help pass their days without food crisis.
Of the total, some 900 families would get rice from Shaghata upazila, 1000 from Fulchhari upazila, 822 from Sadar upazila and 800 from Sundarganj upazila of the district, said an official.
Necessary measures have been taken to distribute the 20 kgs of rice to each of the registered fishermen of the department of fisheries immediately, said AKM Idris Ali, district relief and rehabilitation officer.
District fisheries officer Abdud Dayan Dulu said the fishermen who catch fishes in the rivers living on the riverside had been made aware about the Hilsa ban period through loud speakers, holding view exchange meeting, and distributing leaflets to them.
Earlier, a preparatory meeting organized by district administration and department of fisheries for the district task force committee was also held at the conference room of deputy commissioner here on September 25 to preserve mother Hilsas during the ban period, he also said.
It may be mentioned here that a huge quantity of Hilsa fishes were caught in the river here by the fishermen; resulting the department of fisheries brought the district under Hilsa zone last year.
Considering the hardships of the fishermen here the ministry is going to disburse rice as food assistance to them for the first time, sources said.
The fishermen leaders of the district highly lauded the government’s initiatives for distributing rice to the poor fishermen to pass the period smoothly.