Hatchery owners in Kishoreganj are anxious over the possibility of a big loss due to hostile weather and the recent rise of Covid-19 in the country. The second wave of Corona along with hot weather sent a bad message to the region's hatchery business.
At the same time, the people involved in this business have fallen into a miserable situation this year due to the collapse in the sale of fish fry.
Last year, fish farmers in the region suffered due to the global corona situation during the fry production season. The hatcheries practically stopped producing and selling fish for about six months due to the horrors of the corona. Thousands of fish farmers became unemployed. Many businesses were closed down. Later, when the Corona situation came under control, hatchery owners and fish farmers started working in full swing again.
However, this year they are worried about the outbreak of the corona and the severe heat. The maximum temperature in Kishoreganj region has been fluctuating between 34 and 37 degree celsius this week. Temperatures of 36 to 37 degrees are being felt around noon. The hatchery industry is once again under threat due to temperature on one hand and corona on the other. On the one hand, fish sales have declined due to corona, for example, severe drought is hampering fry production. As a result, fish farmers are now at their wits end. They are fearing a loss of crores in the current situation.
According to the district fisheries office, there are a total of 12 hatcheries in Kishoreganj, including two government ones. There are 122 Haors on 83 sq km of water. The fish fries produced here meet 30 percent of the country's demand and millions of people are involved in this industry.
Hatchery owners said, “All the ponds are drying up due to the drought. We are not able to sell the fries that are being produced in the hatcheries, due to lack of water. Moreover, for the ongoing lockdown we are not getting any buyer from outside. As a result, we are afraid of falling into a big crisis. Since March last year we have not been able to make a profit in fish farming. This time we will have no way to survive the loss of the second wave.”
Takdir Ahmed Pavel, Managing Director of Pavel Agro Hatchery (Pvt) Ltd. said, “There is no rain, fish prices are low and fish farmers have lost their way due to lockdown. Moreover, at present marginal fish farmers are not getting proper incentives from the government and fare losing interest in fish farming.”
As a result, it has indirectly affected the production of fish hatcheries. Hatcheries are also suffering due to high prices of PG, hormones and ethanol, he added. He urged the Prime Minister for providing incentives to the fish farmers and hatchery owners at the field level.
District Fisheries Officer Ripon Kumar Pal said the ongoing lockdown should not be a problem as there is no ban on transporting goods. If it rains, fish production will be able to run smoothly.