Bagerhat Correspondent :
Even during the breeding season, fish hunting is going on in the various rivers and canals of the East and Western Sundarbans. Even with the use of environmentally destructive poisons. Apart from this, crabs are being hunted with banned iron rods and traps. In this connection various species of fish and fish fries living deep in the forest are constantly being destroyed.
And a group of miscreants called fishermen are being assisted in this work by some corrupt officials and employees of the Forest Department. As a result, it has been alleged that the fishing permit ban in the Sundarbans during the breeding season remains a mere paper limit. According to sources, 31 percent of the Sundarbans is covered by wetlands.
A large part of the vast natural resources is covered by fish resources. There are 450 rivers and streams spread like a net. And these rivers and streams contain 210 species of white fish. Out of them, 26 species of shrimp and lobsters, 13 species of crabs and numerous aquatic animals are living in water lands. The government earns a huge amount of revenue from these fish resources every year.
Currently, the breeding season of fish and wildlife is underway in the Sundarbans. During this time, there is a ban on fishing for fish and crabs in the forests for long 3 months with effect from June 01 to August 31 to ensure the free movement and reproduction of fish and forest animals in the rivers and canals of the Sundarbans. As a result, tourism and fishermen are banned from issuing permits. Apart from that, tree regeneration occurs in the Sundarbans during the rainy season.
Therefore, entry into the forest has been banned during this time to keep the Sundarbans healthy. But unscrupulous fishermen have been illegally entering the rivers and canals under various stations of the Sundarban East and West ern Forest Divisions and are freely fishing with banned gillnets.
Some fishermen are also fishing with banned gillnets in canals and rivers inside the forest, using environmentally destructive poisons. Even in banned canals known as fish breeding centers. Apart from this, crabs are also being hunted with banned iron hooks and traps. And countless beautiful saplings are being cut down and used to keep these traps in the rivers and canals.
