Once full of fish, haors now struggle to sustain fishermen
The traditional livelihood of fishermen in Bangladesh’s haor areas is facing a severe, multi-dimensional crisis as climate anomalies, ecological degradation, indiscriminate fishing, excessive use of pesticides and a flawed waterbody leasing system take a heavy toll on fish resources and fishing communities.
The crisis has become particularly acute in Kishoreganj, where hundreds of fishing families have been forced to abandon their ancestral profession as fish stocks continue to decline and access to haor waterbodies becomes increasingly difficult.
Fishermen say the number of native fish species has fallen drastically. While around 160 native species were once found in Kishoreganj’s haor areas, only 30 to 40 species are now commonly found, according to local fishermen.
The Department of Fisheries, however, estimates that around 260 fish species were once found in the haor areas. Many of those species have either become extinct, are on the verge of extinction, or have entered endangered status.
The decline in fish stocks has directly affected the livelihoods of fishing families. At the same time, fishermen complain that the waterbody leasing system has favoured local influential people, leaving poor fishermen with little or no access to their traditional fishing grounds.
As their incomes decline, many fishermen are leaving their ancestral profession and taking up other jobs. Some have migrated to Dhaka to work in garment factories, while others are working as daily wage labourers, digging soil or driving rickshaws.
Fishermen and fish traders say the scale of the decline can also be seen in the fishing business. Around two to three years ago, the value of fish transactions was estimated at Tk 3-4 crore, but it has now fallen to around Tk 50 lakh.
Fishing Village Loses Its Livelihood
Chong Noagaon is a haor-dominated village in Karimganj upazila of Kishoreganj. Once, more than 100 fishing families lived there, with fishing in the haor serving as their main source of livelihood.
Fishermen would leave home in the morning with their nets and return in the evening with boats full of fish.
That traditional way of life has now almost disappeared.
Many residents have left their ancestral homes because fish are no longer available in the haor as they were in the past. Some have moved to Dhaka and joined garment factories, while others have become day labourers or rickshaw drivers.
Only around 20 to 25 fishing families are now somehow surviving in the village.
Fishermen say the problem is not only the declining fish population. The waterbody leasing system has also made their lives increasingly difficult.
Sudhanshu Das, a fisherman from Chong Noagaon, said, “Earlier, there were more than 100 fishing families. Now only 10 to 20 families remain. We fishermen cannot fish freely in the haor. We have to pay those who have taken leases of the waterbodies. Only those who can afford to pay can fish.”
Poor Fishermen Priced Out of Haors
Bimal Das of Gopdighi Fishermen’s Village in Mithamoin said fishermen have to pay large sums to leaseholders simply to cast their nets.
“Those who obtain leases do not allow us to cast our nets without paying them. It costs Tk 15-20 lakh to obtain a lease, which poor fishermen cannot afford. We cannot take leases, so we go to Dhaka and do various jobs, including digging soil,” he said.
He alleged that influential people in the area obtain the leases, sometimes using the names of fishermen’s associations.
“Those who bring leases are influential people. However, when we bring leases, they bring them in the name of our fishermen’s association,” he said.
Parimal Barman, a fisherman from Dampara in Nikli upazila, said the daily income from fishing is no longer enough to support a family.
“If we take money from the leaseholders to cast our nets, we cannot repay them. We have to deposit Tk 300-350 every day, while we get fish worth only Tk 400-500. This is not enough to support our families,” he said.
Wholesale Fish Market Also Hit
The crisis has affected not only fishermen but also fish traders and traditional wholesale markets in the haor region, which covers nearly 1,500 square kilometres across the districts.
The traditional Balikhla wholesale fish market has also lost much of its former vibrancy.
A few years ago, fish worth Tk 2-3 crore was sold at the market every day. Now, traders say, there are many days when fish worth even Tk 5 lakh is not sold.
Enamul Mia, a fish trader at Balikhla Bazar, said several species that were once abundant are now on the verge of extinction.
“The fish that were available earlier are on the verge of extinction. Shrimp and eel were abundant before, but now they are almost non-existent. Very few are found. I used to see a fish called queen fish, but now I do not see it anymore,” he said.
He blamed indiscriminate fishing methods, including the use of ring nets, for the disappearance of many species.
“Various fish have become extinct because of ring nets,” he said.
Another trader, Alamgir Hossain, said the decline in haor shrimp has been particularly alarming.
“Three to four thousand kilograms of large haor shrimp used to come to Balikhla market every day. Now, not even 100 kilograms comes,” he said.
He warned that the continued use of Chinese double nets and pesticides could cause further damage to the haor ecosystem.
“In the future, due to Chinese double nets and pesticides, local haor fish may not be available even as medicine. Those who catch fish do not follow any rules. As a result, the number of local fish is gradually decreasing,” he said.
Native Fish Species Under Threat
According to the Department of Fisheries, the decline in haor fish resources is accompanied by a significant loss of biodiversity.
Around 260 species of fish were once found in the haors. A large number have now become extinct, are on the verge of extinction or are classified as endangered.
Among the native species facing serious threats are mahashol, sarpunti, rita, pangash, air, chital, pabda, kalbaush, tit punti, gang magur and shal baim.
Kishoreganj District Fisheries Officer Md Shahidul Islam told The New Nation that government intervention is urgently needed to prevent further destruction of fish resources.
“If the filling of the bottoms of rivers, canals and other waterbodies in the haor can be prevented, it will be possible to protect native fish species,” he said.
He said fish were once abundant in the haor waterbodies, but their numbers have declined because of the filling and degradation of rivers, canals and other waterbodies.
“A proposal has already been sent to the higher authorities to excavate the waterbodies. All the canals, rivers and streams need to be restored,” he said.
Awareness Also Essential
The fisheries official said government initiatives alone would not be enough to protect the haor’s fish resources.
“Along with the government, fishermen also need to be aware of the issue. If fishermen are not aware, this work will not be successful,” he said.
He added that a project has been undertaken to hold awareness meetings with fishermen at the grassroots level.
The aim is to encourage fishermen to comply with fishing regulations and discourage practices that are destroying breeding grounds and reducing fish populations.
Fish Production Figures
According to the District Fisheries Office, the annual fish production of Kishoreganj stands at around 107,147 metric tonnes.
Of this, approximately 77,823 metric tonnes are produced in canals, floodplains and ponds, while around 29,324 metric tonnes come from haors and rivers.
For the fishermen who have depended on these waters for generations, however, the crisis is about more than declining production figures.
As fish species disappear, traditional fishing grounds become inaccessible and earnings continue to fall, an ancestral way of life in the haor region is steadily disappearing.
