Hilsa to be back on plates in Bengal by January

The foodies in Bengal couldn’t have got a better New Year gift:...

The foodies in Bengal couldn’t have got a better New Year gift: on Thursday the Bangladesh Government declared that it was lifting its ban on the export of Padma Hilsa to India. The first consignment is likely to arrive in the second week of January.

Bangladesh had banned export of the prized fish to India on August 5 due to a shortage of Hilsa in its local markets. The shortage had also led to a steep price hike in the country forcing the Government to stop exports.

“The availability of Hilsa in the local markets

can never be hampered by the export of the fish to West Bengal. Not even five per cent of the total catch there is exported here,” said Atanu Das of Hilsa Fish Importers’ Association of Kolkata. According to their records, about three lakh metric tonnes fo Hilsa is caught in Bangladesh every year. Out of this, only 5,000 metric tonne is exported to India. “Bangladesh will suffer a loss of Rs 100 crore annually if the ban is not lifted,” said Das.

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Over the past few months members of association had met External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Fisheries Minister Kironmoy Nanda in this regard. A delegation had also met the Bangladesh High Commissioner to discuss the issue.

Hilsa is mostly available in the districts of Khulna, Faridpur and Barishal, the districts through which the Padma flows in Bangladesh.