Even after the 22-day fishing ban to protect mother hilsa, large-sized hilsa remain scarce in rivers — sending prices soaring once again. A visit to Barishal’s Port Road fish market on Friday revealed that the price of hilsa has reached record highs due to limited supply.
Fish traders said no hilsa weighing 1.5 kilograms or more has been caught so far. Medium-sized hilsa weighing between 1.2 to 1.3 kilograms are being sold at Tk 120,000 per maund, while one-kilogram hilsa are priced at Tk 105,000 per maund, and 800–900 gram hilsa at Tk 96,000 per maund.
Smaller hilsa are comparatively cheaper, but still expensive — fish weighing around 300 grams are selling for Tk 800 per kg, and 250-gram hilsa for Tk 700 per kg.
Trader Masum said, “There’s almost no big hilsa in the market, and whatever little comes in is so costly that buyers can’t afford it. Most people just ask the price and walk away.”
Customer Zakir Hossain said, “I came to buy a one-kilogram hilsa, but when I heard it costs Tk 2,500 for a single fish, I had to leave without buying.”
Fisheries officer Mohammad Alam explained, “Fishing trawlers are supposed to operate in the deep sea, but many are catching fish near river estuaries instead. This prevents large hilsa from swimming upstream into the rivers. Unless this practice is stopped, big hilsa will continue to disappear.”
Overall, hilsa prices have once again gone beyond the reach of ordinary consumers, despite the fishing ban having ended.