Defying ban, piranha being sold openly

Piranha has been banned in Bangladesh since 2008 as it is considered as a threat to indigenous aquatic life. With its sharp teeth and voracious appetite for meat, the small freshwater fish of South American origin is a dangerous predator when attacking any animal in a group. Its farming, selling and storing is a punishable offence under the Protection and Conservation of Fish Act. Since June 2014, the government has also banned its import, display and marketing. If any person commits the offence, he or she will face a maximum punishment of two years' imprisonment or a fine of Tk 500,000 or both.
Despite the ban, piranha is openly on sale at different fish markets of Thakurgaon, particularly on the road of Thakurgaon Railway Crossing Gate. Traders are deceiving the innocent customers calling it a kind of Rupchanda. Poor monitoring by the authorities concerned, absence of awareness campaign and low price are the main reasons behind the increasing sale and cultivation of the fish.
Fishermen are selling piranha in the open markets also because of ignorance. However, a number of pond owners in the district are cultivating the banned fish only for making good profits. Piranha cultivation is much more profitable than other fishes as it grows big within a short period. The authorities should launch awareness campaign across the country so that these fish are not farmed and sold anywhere in the country.
Ashikujaman Syed,
Research Assistant,
Bioinformatics Research Lab,
Center for Research Innovation and Development (CRID),
syedashikujaman@gmail.com