Fish production has increased significantly in Rajshahi district after taking multidimensional development and extension programmes.
Fish farming made many people financially solvent in the region along with a boost to their social dignity hence contributing to meet the demand of animal protein across the country.
Amzad Hossain, a fish farmer of Keshorehat village in Mohanpur upazila, alone produced 30.25 tonnes of fish worth around Tk 4.425 million making neat profit of Tk 1.5 million in 2018.
Through ensuring quality, he collects eggs from government hatcheries and rivers and breeds fishes from the eggs by himself. In the initial stage, he got training from Upazila Fisheries Office on fish farming.
“Fish production was 52,171 tonnes around ten years back while it increased to over 82,230 tonnes in 2018, said District Fisheries Officer (Rajshahi) Shamsul Alam Shah.
Highlighting various programmes organised by the Department of Fisheries, he said about 95,477 kilograms of fish fingerlings were released in internal water-bodies to increase production.
Noting that some 18,920 fishermen were given registration certificates, the Fisheries Officer said, of them, about 12,325 fishermen have already got their identity cards so that they can avail necessary support and incentives from the government to improve their livelihood.
He said a total of 35 beel nurseries over an area of 3,062.03 hectares were established in the district to boost the production of carp fishes, while 15 fish sanctuaries were established with a view to preserving indigenous fish species, which are on the verge of extinction.
Around 50,580 people, who were involved in fish farming, were imparted training for enhancing fish production through improving their farming management, the Fisheries Officer said.
“We’ve established 312 projection hatcheries over an area of 76.60 hectares for wide-ranging dissemination of modern fish farming technology,” he said.
About the fish habitat development, Alam Shah said about 100 derelict water-bodies and wetlands measuring more than 39 hectares were excavated in the district during the last ten years, reports BSS.
“We’ve distributed eco-friendly net among 6,105 fishermen as their alternative employment support.”
Fish growers in Rajshahi attained success in fish production in the last couple of years after the Department of Fisheries took diversified efforts to boost fish production there.
After meeting up the growing local demand, the district is now supplying over 100 trucks of fish to different districts, including Dhaka city, every day, officials said.
Rajshahi now has 41,876 ponds spread over an area of 7,294 hectares, 6108 commercial farms on 3,462 hectares and 486 open water-bodies, including canal, beel, river and floodplain.