Club Angling in Bangladesh

In Bangladesh there are few but prominent opportunities of club level angling as well. Bangladesh Amateur Angling Association (BAAA) is one of the oldest angling clubs located in Dhaka City with there office at Kalabagan. The Dhanmondi Lake once was a great place for hobbyist anglers for fishing. But after ‘90s everything changed dramatically as pollution destroyed everything. And the lack became abandoned. BAAA became just a name.

Syed Shawkat Hossain Catches a Katla from Bhatiari Lake, Chittagong

On the other hand in present years Chittagong is playing a very important role to promote and continue club level angling. The authority of Chittagong Golf Club organizes angling competitions round the year and anglers from the whole country participate there with great enthusiasm. In Chittagong, Bhatiari Lake and Chittagong Railway Colony Lake are two great angling spots where club anglers try their luck. Foy’s Lake is another great place in Chittagong City where many anglers go fishing. But here you need a good connection to fish.

Tangail City Corporation, Jessore Municipality Authority and many organizations organize angling competition country wide all the year round. There is a reservoir in Jamuna Resort, Jamuna where anyone can go and enjoy fishing for about 4000 BDT per person. The resort offers foods and accommodation as well if anyone wants to enjoy fishing with family and stay night over there. It is a highly secured resort with world class facilities. One can also hire a boat from here and try his luck in the mighty Jamuna river.

Some facts to keep into account

Bangladesh is a land of rivers. It is also the biggest delta of the world. Since the prehistoric time the people of this country has been depending on these rivers for their own survival. Fishes have been an essential part of Bengali foods. There is a saying 'rice and fish make the Bengali'. And there are not so many countries where fishes can be in such wide varieties. So, catching fish has always been a part of Bengali lifestyle. Angling in Bangladesh has its own charm and excitement. Some of the biggest Asian rivers have flown over the country. The country has more than 300 kilometers of shoreline. An UNDP survey in recent year published that about 6.5 percent of Bangladesh is permanently waterland, 20 to 25 percent deeply flooded and 35 to 40 percent shallow wetlands which occasionally go under water during monsoon. Country with this amount of water-land creates a huge opportunity for angling and our objective of this blogging is exploring chances and sharing our experiences and knowledge with the fellow anglers.

The angling season is about to begin here in 15 to 20 days. Most rivers are now full of life and strength because of monsoon water flow. Fishes have already hatched their eggs by now and they are about to start feeding in a very short time. Anglers are taking preparation for the emerging angling season. Some have already prepared their ground baits and have kept them under the process of seasoning for better performance. There is one thing which most Bangladeshi anglers regret about is that in Bangladesh we do not have any all-in-one tackle shop at all. It is really pathetic that there are only about 6 to 13 tackle shops in the whole country. We can't find quality equipments in those shops. Mostly Chinese and Korean low grade products that we are bound to purchase as there are no alternatives. Some enthusiastic anglers collect famous branded equipments through different channels, but sometimes it requires a significant amount of money.

If someone wishes to give a try in Bangladeshi waters, I personally recommend to bring his equipments extensively. Because if he thinks to buy any particular item from Bangladesh, it is almost obvious that he will not get it. For example, if you like any particular flavor or recipe for carp fishing, please come with a little extra amount of your bait items . Because going out of baits is more painful than returning without any fish.