Fish prices slashed by 50 per cent- consumers panicked by the death of fish because of poisoning

Jalpaiguri, Nov. 29: Fish markets in and around Jalpaiguri experienced a sharp decline in sales today even though prices were slashed by 50 per cent.

The consumers kept away from the shops as they were panicked by the death of thousands of fish in the Karala yesterday because of poisoning.

“Today was the worst day in recent times. Fearing that not many buyers would turn out, we had marked down all types of fish so that losses would be minimum. Still, the trade was bad,” said Bhanu Das, a fish seller at Dinbazar here.

There were few takers for varieties like puti, boroli, kholsa and dwarika, which are found in the Karala as well as other rivers.

“Prices of rohu and katla have been slashed from Rs 140 per kilo to Rs 90 and bata from Rs 140 to Rs 80 and even less in Dinbazar (see chart). People were yet reluctant to buy anything. They visited the shops, but did not buy the fish even brought from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh,” said Ratan Roy, a trader at Dinbazar.

Most of the people who had made a beeline for the fish stalls returned without making any purchase. “I understand the logic given by the traders that not all fish on sale are found in the Karala. I feel it is safe not to eat fish for few days,” said Arup Biswas, a resident of Jalpaiguri.

The dead fish on the Karala had an impact on the trade in Siliguri, Rajganj, Haldibari and Mainaguri also. “We were not hit as badly as the fish sellers in Jalpaiguri. But compared to other days, sale was not good today,” said Atul Sarkar, a seller at Fuleswari market in Siliguri.

The Jalpaiguri municipality said people had been asked not to consume fish from the Karala. “Our men are keeping a watch on all markets to prevent the sale of fish brought from the Karala. We have asked people to refrain from eating only the Karala fish,” said Mohan Bose, the chairman.

Expert team visit

A team from the zoology department of Jalpaiguri Ananda Chandra College visited the banks of the Karala today and collected the samples of snakes, frogs and molluscs that had died in the Karala along with the fish.

“There are no chemical factories in the vicinity,” said associate professor and one of the team members Tanmoy Dutta, indicating that there had been no contamination from effluents. “We have also collected a dead pond heron too. The eco-system along a stretch has been affected.”
TT