B Mirror Desk : The Labor Reform Commission has suggested that the country’s Hilsa fishing prohibition be shortened to 15 days. Typically, a 22-day prohibition is enforced annually to guarantee the secure reproduction of Hilsa fish.

Furthermore, the Labor Reform Commission study suggested that workers harmed by sandbaggers, pirates, and natural disasters be compensated.

Professor Muhammad Yunus, the chief advisor, recently received the report from the Labor Reform Commission. The report has emphasized these recommendations.

Typically, the full moon of Ashwin, which occurs in October according to the English calendar, is when the Hilsa fishing restriction is decided. For instance, it was illegal to catch, transport, purchase, sell, store, or exchange Hilsa for 22 days in 2022, from October 7 to October 28. Therefore, from October 12 to November 2 in 2023 and October 13 to November 3 in 2024, the prohibition was in effect. The government gives registered fishermen food aid during this restriction, such as 25 kilograms of rice per fisherman.

Hilsa is prohibited in other ways as well, though. Throughout the whole Hilsa reproductive, harvesting, and conservation cycle, the government enforces various prohibitions at various points in time. For instance, from March to April, all forms of fishing, including Hilsa, are prohibited in the Bay of Bengal’s coastal regions. The primary goal of this prohibition is to boost fish output. Between May and July, Hilsa fishing is prohibited in designated places for “jatka conservation,” which is mostly carried out in a few districts, such as Barisal, Bhola, Chandpur, Lakshmipur, and Shariatpur.

Other suggestions for fishermen and the fishing community were included in the Labor Reform Commission’s report. The Reform Commission, for instance, recommended doing away with the Jalmahal Ijara system and replacing it with a system of licenses or registration. It has also been claimed to enforce the gazette for trawler fishermen and guarantee social security, which includes rationing and alternative employment during the prohibition time.

The commission’s report suggests enacting legislation to stop the Dadan system, offering interest-free loans with flexible terms, and giving employees identity cards and tracking-monitoring devices.

The Labor Reform Commission has also suggested establishing ice factories and other infrastructure at fishing wharves, reserving land for fishermen along the shore, and outright prohibiting illicit sand mining.