Export of hilsa to India is the decision of the Ministry of Commerce

Hilsa export will help improve relations between the two countries.

Export of hilsa to India is the decision of the Ministry of Commerce.

Autumn festival of Durga Puja 2024 in 1st week of next month. BBC mentioned, even though hilsa is a national fish, it is an expensive fish in Bangladesh. Only the rich and the middle class can afford it. The poor cannot buy this fish.

Hilsa fish is deeply embedded in Bengali culture and cuisine throughout Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. Hilsa fish is highly prized for its delicate taste and variety of uses. Hence, the shortage of hilsa becomes a challenge for the people of both Bangladesh and West Bengal.

According to economists, the interim government has approved the export of hilsa fish to India amid widespread criticism as a symbol of bilateral friendship

Eating hilsa during Durga Puja, the biggest religious festival of Sanatan religions, is a long-standing tradition. Regardless of price or production, Bangladesh should export hilsa fish to India as a gift to maintain good relations and respect the country's traditions, many analysts say.

Analysts of the two countries consider the export of hilsa as 'fish diplomacy' between India and Bangladesh. It will play a major role in the development of good relations between the two countries.

Bangladesh has been exporting hilsa fish to India for the past five years before Durga Puja. On the same occasion, the government has approved the export of 3000 tons of hilsa fish to India. As a result, Indians, especially the citizens of West Bengal, are getting Hilsa from Bangladesh before Durga Puja, which starts on October 8.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh thinks that the export of hilsa is prohibited. However, hilsa exports are relaxed around religious festivals, especially during pujas in West Bengal.

Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhtar said that the permission to export hilsa to India is the decision of the Ministry of Commerce. Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock does not. Hilsa has not gone yet, it has just been decided. For this reason, there is no reason to increase the price of hilsa in the market.

He said these things in response to journalists' questions after the meeting at the secretariat on Sunday (September 22, 2024).

Farida Akhtar said, "Hilsa has been produced in the country more than 5 lakh metric tons.

The decision to export is 3 thousand metric tons.