The government has no plan to lift the ban on export of hilsa to ensure smooth supply of the country’s most coveted fish in local market, said commerce minister Tofail Ahmed in Dhaka on Wednesday, reports Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha. ‘How much we get from export of hilsa fish? We don’t have any immediate plan to resume hilsa export,’ Tofail told the news agency.Referring to the upcoming month of Ramadan, the commerce minister said people would enjoy the fish at an affordable price in the fasting month for Muslims.
The government on July 31, 2012 imposed the ban on hilsa export to keep its prices at reasonable level in the local market.
Bangladesh had stopped hilsa export temporarily to meet the domestic demand.
Neighbouring India has been requesting the government to withdrawn the ban on export as the fish has huge demand in the Indian state of Paschimbanga.
Meanwhile, the civil society apprehended that resuming the export of the hilsa fish would lead to a shorter supply in the domestic market, prompting escalation of the price which the lower and the middle income sections of society would not be able to afford.
According to the Department of Fisheries, the hilsa catch in the last fiscal stood about at 391 thousand tonnes.
-With New Age input
