Hilsa price plummets on increased supply

CHANDPUR, Aug 24: Price of hilsa fish has come down by Tk200-Tk300 per kg in the fish markets of Chandpur district town on the back of its increased supply in the last couple of days.
At this time, Chandpur Fish Landing Ghat, a reputed fish landing point, located at Boro Railway Station in the town witnessed arrival of relatively bigger consignments of the silver fish than usual.
During a visit on Tuesday afternoon, the FE correspondent came to know that daily at least 1,000 maunds of hilsa was coming to this busy fish landing point from southern districts by trucks ,pickups and trawlers. The supply has apparently been higher than the previous year making the consumers hopeful about getting the fish at comparatively lower prices.
Now a hilsa weighing one kg is being sold at Tk1,500 in place of Tk1,800 and the hilsa of the Padma River is sold at Tk1,600 per kg instead of Tk1,900.
Most of the supply of hilsa comes from the southern districts including Bhola, Luxmipur, Ramgati, Borguna, and other island areas-said traders at the ghat which is now humming with activities due to increased supply of hilsa.
Labourers like Anwar, Kader, Aiyub, Abul Kalam and Russel Gazi who had been passing idle time so long for want of work now-a-days remain awfully busy from morning till night due to arrival of relatively bigger consignments of Hilsa at the ghat.
At the same time, the local ice factories adjacent to the fish ghat are also seen so busy in producing ice cans and supplying them to fish arots (trading houses).
Besides, supply of hilsa from this ghat to distant districts like Dhaka, Gazipur, Sylhet, Sreemangal, Moulvibazar, Kishoreganj, Tangail, Jamalpur, Mymensing, Netrakona, Bogra and Manikganj has also increased remarkably. Workers were seen busy packing the parcels.
Customers Shah Alam, Mostafa and a few others said hilsa supply has increased, bringing down its price within the purchasing capacity of the poor and middle-class people.
Meanwhile, online sale of fresh hilsa has also increased at the same time-said fish trader Sajib Kr Das (30) and a few senior traders.
Fish Merchants' Association secretary Shabe Barat Sarker and members Mostafa Didar Khan and Nurul Islam said daily about 100 packs of hilsa and other fresh fish worth about Tk0.5 million are sent to different distant places through private courier services .
In the last few days, fish parcels worth about Tk1.0 million were sent to distant places through courier services and by buses.
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