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.

This is the Death of a Country

It is now monsoon in Bangladesh. In most rivers water level is rising. As a result the riverside low lands are going under water in most of the parts across the country during this time. These monsoon water flooded low lands are called ‘khal’, ‘bil’, ‘haor’ etc. in Bangladesh. These places create Bangladesh an ideal place for fishes to hatch their eggs. Generally the breeding season of most fishes in Bangladesh starts from mid April to late July. As new monsoon water emerges, fishes come too to complete their life cycle. In this country most riverside low lands are used for cultivating paddy. Farmers cut the crops just before the monsoon and when these lands go under water they provide enough food and shelter for fishes for hatching their eggs and raising hatchlings.

In Bangladesh fishing during this time is prohibited by law. Because fishes go to shallow waters for hatching and raising their hatchlings and fishes are the most vulnerable during this time. As Bangladesh is an agricultural country and most of the people in this country live bellow the poverty line and as there remain very few scopes for farming related jobs during monsoon, a large number of farming people become involved in fishing during this time to maintain their family. Graved female fishes become their primary targets. Because they are easy to catch and they are sold in a higher price. This way many species of Bangladeshi fishes have already gone extinct and many are into the pipeline.

Pollution is another reason for the extinction of many species of fishes. No one will believe how a whole country can be turned into a massive garbage field in just 20 years. The wind of globalization hits the country in late ‘80s. Government of Bangladesh invited foreign investor with very liberal policy to invest. As a result rapid industrialization took place both in government and private sectors. By the new millennium thousands of industries established around the country. The pioneer of these sectors becomes the RMG (Ready Made Garments). Cheap labor, very liberal government policy, infrastructural advantages managed to bring foreign invest in a massive scale in this sector. This certainly has changed the economy of Bangladesh dramatically. An agricultural country turns into an industrial country in a short time. This creates a huge employment opportunity countrywide. Soon this RMG becomes the major contributor of the national GDP. But one thing had been overlooked for years and that is the question of protecting the environment.

In just twenty years major rivers around the capital has become so toxic that the presences of any life form is impossible. The Buriganga which is the main river flowing beside the capital Dhaka becomes the reservoir of thick black contaminated water and its bed becomes a 6 feet layer of poly bags and human wastes. The same consequence followed the rivers of the major cities around the country. Initially there had been no provision of establishing of any Effluent Treatment Plant alongside any industrial project. This led the industries to discharge the industrial waste directly into rivers, canals etc. And now everybody is experiencing the consequence of their act. Few environmentalist groups are working in this issue but it seems no one has any kind of responsibility regarding this. To attract foreign investors, Bangladeshi government has established Export Processing Zones (EPZ) around the country without any ETP plant. Anyone can observe what the people of Bangladesh are paying for the multinational companies for keeping their profit margin intact.

However, all the discharged wastes come directly into rivers by downfall. The result is severe. Our rivers are becoming of no use at all. Species of fishes are going extinct very rapidly. And angling is becoming almost impossible for hobbyists to carry on. The angling season is starting in 2 months. Wishing all Bangladeshi anglers good luck. Ending with a quote of Albert Einstein:

“There are two things without any limits. One is

the universe and the other is the human stupidity”

Angling in Bangladesh

Bangladesh is a paradise for anglers. Because there are more than 1000 big and small rivers in the country, from which the country takes its name 'The Mother of Rivers'.
In Bangladesh we do have enormous opportunities for both freshwater and saltwater fishing. Wallago Attu (locally called Boal), Rohu, different varieties of Carp, different kinds of Sneakhead, Giant Catfish etc. are the main target fish of freshwater angling.

A 14.5  KG Chital fish ( Notopterus Chitala) landed by a local from the Jamuna, Sirajganj last year

There are hundreds of angling location around the country yet to be explored and to be put into focus for attracting tourists. Among them Chalan Bill in Pabna & Rajshahi, Hakaluki Haor in Sylhet and Sunamganj, the Brahmaputra River in Mymensingh district, the Jamuna River in Jamalpur and Sirajgonj, the Surma River in Sylhet are all good locations worth mentioning. Besides these there are some harder to reach locations well worth the effort. To mention, Boga Lake in Bandarban District is one of the least explored locations in the country. It is a freshwater lake at a height of about 2000 feet, at the top of hills. It has some giant fish that adventurous anglers go after. Poor communication system is a problem to get there. In Rangamati district there are plenty of hot spots for angling. You will simply fall in love with the beautiful Kaptai Lake and can enjoy the fishing all day and night.

A 100 kg bagarius(Dwarf Goonch) was caught and sold in the Poradoh Fair, Bogra, Bangladesh on February 9, 2011. The fish was sold in Taka 65,000 (US$ 1000 Approx). News: The Daily Kaler Kantha, 10-Feb-2011. http://www.dailykalerkantho.com/?view=de​tails&archiev=yes&arch_date=10-02-2011&t​ype=gold&data=Laptop&pub_no=427&cat_id=1​&menu_id=56&news_type_id=1&index=13

A 55kg black carp was hooked by a local angler on January 25, 2011 from Jessore Municipality pond. It was 5 feet 2 inches in length and 3 feet 6 inches in width. News - The Daily Kaler Kantho, January 26, 2011. http://www.dailykalerkantho.com/?view=de​tails&type=gold&data=Download&pub_no=412​&cat_id=1&menu_id=14&news_type_id=1&inde​x=3

I personally am a fan of wild fishing. I mostly like to fish in rivers or canals. And Bangladesh is indeed a place for wild fishing if you have good connections. I must mention the rivers of Khulna district, to be more specific the river of Sundarbans. Here you will find a variety of both freshwater and saltwater fishes around the channels. The Meghna River is one of the most prominent hot-spots for anglers for game fishing. Bhairab, Daudkandi, Chandpur, and Banks of Narayangonj are also exciting places for anglers. Jaflong at Sylhet is another spot for fishing. Here you can try your luck for landing huge Silver Mahseer (Locally known as Mohashol). There are also some wonderful locations around the Capital Dhaka. To mention but a few; the Tora Bridge and Chaira at Hemayetpur, Itabhara at Keranigonj, Kunda at Boliarpur, the Bongshee River at Savar, Kaliganga River at Singair, and some rivers at Nawabganj etc. There are also some private reservoirs around Dhaka where anglers can fish for a small fee. So, if you want more information about angling in Bangladesh feel free to email me.