Booster for Tanguar Haor

WHAT A BIG CATCH! A fisherman with a big mother fish (top) that grew undisturbed in Tanguar Haor during the interim management by Sunamganj district administration. PHOTO: STAR

Swiss Development Corporation (SDC), a Swedish organization, has expressed its interest to provide assistance for the country's second Ramsar site.

The offer came after several surveys in the 3,868 acre waterbody in last few months following visits by Swiss ambassador Dora Rapold and SDC's country Representative Christine Poffe in November last year.

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Tanguar Haor, home to about 140 species of sweet water fishes, over 60,000 birds, and a resting place for numerous guest birds during the winter, was declared an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) in 1999 and was taken as a Ramsar site in 2000.

But, implementation of the Ramsar project remained uncertain due to indecision by policymakers and failure to select financial investors, leaving it to hands of plunderers.

At least Tk 5 crore resources were plundered by organised gangs and politically backed vested quarters till the Sunamganj district administration took over its control and placed it under an interim management in November 2003.

The surveys were done by SDC and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Now, things are under process for finalising plans for the 6-year intensive management, Sumanganj Deputy Commissioner Zafar Siddique told this correspondent.

The plans were discussed at a May 10 meeting in Dhaka, organised by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, where officials of SDC, IUCN, Centre for Natural Resource Services (CNRS) and Inter Co-operation (IC) attended.

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) will be signed soon after finalising the plan, he said.

The people living in 48 villages around the Haor have been motivated not to net mother fishes during breeding season and to protect its resources, the DC said. They will be involved in its management and alternative jobs will be created for them during the fishing season, he said.

"We got very good results under the interim management". Five camps manned by BDR, police, Ansars and magistrates were set up in the Haor area to protect the resources since the Sunamganj district administration took it over.

"Recently we withdrew BDR and police from the camps, but the situation remained satisfactory", he noted happily.

The Tanguar Haor, spread over Sunamganj, Habiganj and parts of Netrokona and Kishoreganj districts, plays an important role in fish production as mother fishes can breed in vast natural waters.

Some fishermen in Manikkhila, Indrapur, Patabuka, Anandanagar villages on the bank of the haor however told this correspondent that they are in hardship as fishing in the haor, their main profession for long, is stopped for over two years. Montu Barman of Bhabanipur, Abdul Majid of Nishchintapur and Jagadish Barman of Anandanagar said they want alternative jobs.

They however admitted that fish resource increased in the last two years.

Fishery officials and villagers said big quantities of fries of kalabaush, ghania, pabda ruhi etc were netted in last two years, which contributed to fish culture in the country.

"We got allout support from all quarters including local people and are determined to protect the resources until a comprehensive management strategy to save the nationally important waterbody is finalised by the government and the Swiss organisation," the DC said.

Jatiya Sangsad Whip Fazlul Haque Aspia, also minister in charge for Sunamganj district, said, "We got tremendous results from the interim management".

Local people and public representatives also supported the programme to protect and develop the haor's resources. Plunder is stopped since November 2003, he said.

A fishery department official in Sunamganj said strict vigilance in last two and half years has saved different depleting species of traditional fishes worth crores of taka.

"It will be a great achievement if this can be continued", he said.

Current nets worth over Tk 30 lakh were seized during the initial period of the interim managament by the district administration, he said.

Different varieties of water plants like hijal karach (barringtonia acutangula) and cane clusters grow in the Haor in plenty.

In wet season, the Haor becomes vast sheets of water dotted with island-like small villages. In dry season, when water recedes into major rivers, all that remain are 51 odd beels (small waterbodies).