Crisis of wells, crisis of livelihoods

I have eight boats to collect eggs. So, I applied for an allotment of eight wells but got only four. It's not enough for the eggs I'm collecting.

— Ashu Barua an egg collector

Hundreds of fish egg collectors at Halda river, the only natural carp breeding ground in Bangladesh, are currently going through a huge crisis because of the limited allocation of wells.

The brood fishes release eggs during the last week of April or in the beginning of May every year. There are certain conditions for the proper releasing of eggs, including congenial temperature, heavy rain, tide, increased water flow from the upstream in the river etc. Then the collected eggs need to be kept in another waterbody in appropriate conditions for hatching, and that's where the wells come in handy.

That is the crisis that egg collectors of the area currently find themselves in. They fear that if wells are not allocated as per their demands, the eggs extracted from Halda will be wasted, resulting in a huge loss.

"I have eight boats to collect eggs. So, I applied for an allotment of eight wells but got only four. It's not enough for the eggs I'm collecting," said Ashu Barua, an egg collector.

And this is not the case for Ashu only. Majority of the egg collectors are on the verge of losses due to the issue.

According to the district fisheries office, there are 151 wells in four hatcheries on the bank of the Halda. But egg collectors of the area have claimed that at least 400 wells are needed.

During a recent visit to the Middle Madarsha Baruapara hatchery, this correspondent talked to Gazi Selim, hatchery in-charge. "We have 32 wells here," he said.

"All have already been allocated and we have made all kinds of preparations for the hatching," he added.

According to the data of Halda River Research Laboratory (HRRL), the river is the source of eggs worth about Tk 800 crore every year. Egg collection has become the primary earning activity for a large population along the bank of Halda, driving them towards self-reliance. Egg collectors will have to spend a total of Tk 40 lakh to collect the eggs which will go in vain if they fail to hatch the eggs in time.

"Egg collectors informed us about the well crisis after the allocation was completed. We have advised them to make wells on the lands," said Farhana Lovely, district fisheries officer.

Halda researcher Prof Manzoorul Kibria said wells could be made on the ground at Halda's bank earlier but the embankment has made it impossible now.

"But egg collectors do need the wells, and relevant government agencies have to come forward in this regard. Otherwise the livelihood of the egg collectors will be destroyed," he added.