ZCZC
BSS-31
BAN-FISHING-SEA
Ban on fishing in sea to continue till July 23
DHAKA, May 22, 2019 (BSS) – The ban on fishing in the exclusive economic
zone (EEZ) in the Bay of Bengal will continue till July 23, aiming to
preserve and ensure smooth breeding of sea fish and crustacean.
“Harvesting of all kinds of fishes and crustaceans including the lobsters,
shrimp and cuttlefish through commercial trawlers will be prohibited in EEZ
in the Bay of Bengal for 65 days staring from May 20,” State Minister for
Fisheries and Livestock Md Ashraf Ali Khan Khasru said at a press conference
at his ministry’s conference room here.
The restriction on catching fish imposed in the Bay of Bengal from May 20
considering the breeding of sea fishes and their conservation, he added.
During the 65-day ban on fishing in the sea, 414,784 fishermen families
under 42 upazilas of 12 coastal districts will get 40 kilograms of rice as
food assistance per month under the VGF programme as they have no alternative
income source, the state minister said.
Allocation of Taka 225 crore in the budget of fiscal 2019-20 for three
banned period of fishing is underway, Khasru informed.
He said the country achieved self-sufficiency in fish production by
producing 42.77 lakh tonnes fish in fiscal 2017-18. Of them, 6.56 lakh tonnes
were produced from sea which was 15.33 percent of the total fish production,
he added.
Secretary of the Fisheries and Livestock Ministry Raisul Alam Mondal,
Director General of Department of Fisheries Abu Sayed Md Rashedul Haque and
Director General of Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute (BFRI) Dr Yahia
Mahmud were present in the conference, among others.
BSS/ASG/BKD/SAH/SSS/1900 hrs