Chandpur:A mobile court has sentenced 20 fishermen to various terms of imprisonment for illegally catching hilsa in the Padma-Meghna sanctuary in Chandpur, violating a fishing ban.
According to United News of Bangladesh, 13 of the fishermen received 10-day prison sentences, while the remaining seven were sentenced to 15 days each. Additionally, each fisherman was fined Tk 1,000, totaling Tk 20,000 in fines.
The fishermen, who are residents of different villages in the Laxmipur Model union under Chandpur Sadar upazila, were caught during a district task force operation led by Assistant Commissioner and Executive Magistrate Md. Najmul Huda. The operation, conducted from 400 pm to 900 pm on Thursday, resulted in the seizure of 30 kg of hilsa, 35,000 meters of illegal monofilament fishing nets, and three engine-run fishing boats.
The confiscated hilsa fish were distributed to an orphanage and needy people on Friday morning, while the boats were handed over to the Bangladesh Coast Guard. The seized fishing nets were destroyed in the presence of the executive magistrate.
The 22-day ban on fishing in the 70-kilometer sanctuary along the Padma-Meghna rivers in Chandpur, which began on October 8, prohibits catching, buying, selling, storing, and transporting all types of fish, including hilsa. District administration officials have warned that violators will face imprisonment and fines under the law.