Already the Monsoon or Rainy Season is nearing an end and during this period of time, the vast Chalan Beel region of the country is usually filled up with water.
The fishermen of hundreds of villages also engaged in catching fishes with nets and boats braving the turbulent current but, the water seem to be playing truant with those fishermen who earn their livelihood through fishing in the water of the Beel this time.
According to sources, the largest sweet water body of the country is the Chalan Beel and a substantial amount of native fishes are caught and supplied to various places of the country from the areas around the Beel.
Usually, from the first leg of the Bangla month of Ashar, water starts to the Chalan Beel through Hurasagar tributary (sub-river) of Jamuna river at Baghabari point, through Boral of the river Padma at Charghat point and through the Gumani river. But, this year, these tributaries are not getting sufficient water from the main-rivers. As a result, the Chalan Beel is still without water.
Every year, with the entrance of water in the Chalan Beel, thousands of fishermen living inside and adjacent to the beel villages, thronged on the water to catch various local variety of assorted fishes including Puti, Tengra, Patasi, Rayek, Chela, Mola, Moa, Khailsa, Baila, Guchi, Taki, Shoul, Boal, Koi, Jeol, Magur and varieties of carps. But, this year is an exception. As the water has not yet filled the Chalan Beel, the fishermen are also waiting with disappointment and worry and thinking how they would maintain their families if no water with fishes entered into the Chalan Beel this year.
According to eye-witness sources the low-lying areas of Kundail and Bhetua villages under Tarash upazila are only filled with ankle to knee deep water whereas most of the areas of the vast region are without any water.
Mahram and Hamim, two fishermen of Kundail village informed that the water usually starts to enter the Beel areas from the mid of the month of Ashar (first leg of Monsoon) but now the Monsoon is nearing the end and there is no water in the Beel. They further said, they have already purchased boats and nets some two-month ago aiming to catch fish. But, they are starving because of the absence of water in the Beel.
Meanwhile, the pond owners who used to breed and rear fish in their ponds, have sold all their fish from the ponds apprehending an advanced flood. As a result, an acute shortage of supply of fish is being noticed in the markets of the region.
In the fish market of Tarash Bazar fish trader Kuddus was sitting with a scanty of fish to sell. Though there are over 100 fish traders in the market only 10 to 12 traders were seen to attend the market with a small quantity of fish.
Fish hoarder Shahidul Islam at Tarash bazaar informed during the previous years, hundreds of local fishermen used to supply varieties of local varieties of fishes to the wholesale fish but this year, there was no supply of local variety of fish yet.
Tarash Upazila Fisheries Officer Moshgul Azad informed, the fishermen of the plain land (Beel areas) were spending their days in misery. The government is considering paying incentives for those fishermen, he added.