Bangladesh is going to give a special gift to Indians before Durga Puja. After a long wait, Bangladesh has announced to send three thousand tons of Hilsa fish to India. On Saturday, the Commerce Ministry of the Bangladesh government issued a notification. This decision has been taken in an attempt to further strengthen diplomatic relations between India and Bangladesh.
There has been a tradition for a long time that Bangladesh has been sending Hilsa fish to India, but the Yunus government had banned it. Experts believe that if Hilsa was not sent this time, it could have affected the relations between the two countries. Earlier, the interim government of Bangladesh had clearly said that it would not send Hilsa during Durga Puja this time. But now this decision has been reversed at the last moment.
Just a few days ago, the interim government led by Professor Mohammad Yunus had banned hilsa exports to India to meet domestic demand, ending a long-standing tradition by Bangladesh as a goodwill gesture towards its neighbour. “In view of the appeal of the exporters, permission has been granted to export 3,000 tonnes of hilsa fish (to India) on the occasion of the upcoming Durga Puja subject to fulfilling specific conditions,” the commerce ministry said in a statement.
The ministry asked applicants to approach the concerned branch to obtain export permission. The previous Awami League government led by ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had allowed hilsa export to India between September and October every year as a goodwill gesture. This tradition had been going on for years.
Officials said Bangladesh has allowed 79 companies to export a total of 4,000 tonnes to India in 2023. Bangladesh is the world’s largest hilsa producer but it bans the export of the fish due to high local demand. However, during the Durga Puja festival, it usually relaxes the ban on the export of this fish, which is a much-loved dish of Bengalis.
The Fish Importers Association of India had earlier this month urged Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Adviser Touhid Hossain to allow export of Hilsa fish to India during Durga Puja when there was uncertainty over fish exports this year due to unrest and government change in the country.
Bangladesh had banned the export of Hilsa in 2012 but for the past five years, as a goodwill gesture, it has been allowing its export in limited quantities from the first week of September till the end of Durga Puja, association secretary Syed Anwar Maqsood said in a letter dated September 9.
