RAJSHAHI, July 31 (BSS): Fish production target has been set at 70,084 tonnes in the district this year. District Fisheries Officer Golam Rabbani disclosed this at a meeting here and expressed the hope that the target would be achieved.
There are 47,984 ponds measuring 10,716 hectares and 694 open water bodies including canal, beel, rivers and floodplain in the district.
Mr Rabbani told the meeting that around 66,882 tonnes of fishes were harvested from 48,678 open and closed water bodies in 2014 against the demand of 51,151 tonnes. In 2013, the district yielded 61,768 tonnes.
After meeting its gradually increasing local demand, the district has been supplying at least 100 trucks of fish to different districts including the capital Dhaka every day.
Directorate of Fisheries and Fisheries Department of Rajshahi University (RU) jointly organised the discussion styled "Problems and Prospects of Fisheries and its Achievement" held at RU Fisheries Gallery yesterday to mark the ongoing Fisheries Fortnight-2015.
Speakers at the discussion meeting said the fisheries sector needs more vigorous research to protect the fish species, especially the small indigenous ones, from further depletion in the greater interest of meeting protein needs of the people.
They viewed the universities and other research organizations concerned should come forward towards exploring the existing potentialities of the sector coupled with facing its challenges caused by the adverse impact of climate change and other natural and man-made catastrophes.
The adverse situation has been posing a serious threat to the indigenous fish species, particularly the small ones, as most of the water bodies are now dying out in the region especially during the dry season.
RU Treasurer Prof Sayen Uddin and District Fisheries Officer Golam Rabbani addressed the programme as chief and special guests respectively with Prof Dr Afzal Hussain, Chairman of Fisheries Department, in the chair.
Prof Dr Aktar Hossain, Prof Dr Saleha Jeshmin, Senior Fisheries Officer Sahed Ali, Fisheries Officer Sania Afrin and PhD Research Fellow Golam Sarwar Talukder also spoke.
Highlighting the measures undertaken by the government for boosting fisheries output the speakers called for collective efforts towards supplementing the endeavours.
In the wake of diversified efforts taken by the authorities concerned, the district has attained the success of surplus fish production for the last couple of years, they said.
In addition to the surplus fish production, Rajshahi has attained fame of selling and supplying live fish to different destinations.
Many people, including the professionals, have built their fortune through fish farming activities.
Fish farming has the potential to contribute to poverty reduction and food security through a number of ways, including employment, income and fish consumption.
