20kg jatka, 80kg hilsa, 4.20 lakh mtr nets seized in Meghna

Members of Bangladesh Coast Guard seized 200 kilograms of jatka (hilsa fry less than 10 centimetres in length), 80 kilograms of hilsa fish and 4,20,000 metres of current net from two launches in the Meghna River here on Tuesday morning.Bangladesh Coast Guard Chandpur station commander Lieutenant Habibur Rahman said a team of the Coast Guard conducted a drive in two Bhola-bound launches named MV Shbbir-2 and MV Moharaj-VII in the morning and seized 200 kilograms of jatka (hilsa fry less than 10 centimetres in length), 80 kilograms of hilsa and 4,20,000 metres of current nets.The owners of the jatka, hilsa and current nets, however, managed to flee the scene sensing the presence of the team.The nets were burnt to ashes in presence of executive magistrate Rajibul Islam Khan beside the Dakatia River.The seized jatka and hilsa were distributed to local orphanages and madrasas.The government imposed a ban on catching jatka from March to April to boost hilsa production. -UNB, Chandpur