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| Floods 2004 |
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Affected badly by devastating floods across the country, small fish cultivators have urged the government to take immediate measures for their rehabilitation. The country may face serious crisis of fish in the next two months if the government does not take necessary rehabilitation measures, leaders of Bangladesh Small Fishermen Association (BSFA) said at a press conference in Dhaka yesterday. They said fries and growing nishes of 80 percent water bodies in 45 flood-hit districts have been washed away in the flooding causing huge losses to the cultivators. As floodwaters have started receding, people are catching immature fish unabatedly, which threatens the fish resources, the BSFA leaders said. Most of the fishermen and small farmers, who invested money taking loans from institutional or other lenders for fish farming in their own or leased ponds and other water bodies, do not know how they will recuperate their losses. Israil Pandit, chairman of the association, regretted that government has not yet taken any steps to rehabilitate the flood-affected fishermen. In view of the flood the government has decided to distribute seeds and fertilisers among the farmers free of cost but it has no headache for fish sector, he said. The BSFA leaders sought interest-free loans, supply of fish fries free of cost from the government hatcheries and rehabilitation measures for the fishermen families. "We made our appeal to the government on August 2, but received no reply," said Anwar Hossain Sikder, a leader of the association. "We'll be compelled to go for movement if the government does not take any action." The BSFA leader alleged that the real fishermen can never take lease of government-owned open water bodies, rather it depends on who can "satisfy" the Water Development Board and other government agencies concerned. The association urged the government to set up a Matsya Bank (specialised bank for the fishermen), establish 'fish villages' and create a welfare fund for the fishermen. Mokaddem Hossain, Shahjahan Kabir, Moazzem Hossain, AHM Kabir and other leaders of the association were present at the press conference.
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