A fisherman from the Daulatdia ferry ghat area in Rajbari’s Goalanda upazila netted fish worth Tk 78,000 in a single cast at the confluence of the Padma and Jamuna rivers. On Wednesday night, Ishaq Sardar caught two pangas weighing 10 kilograms and 4 kilograms, along with a large 23.5-kilogram katla.
The fish were sold on Thursday morning in an open auction at Anukhar Arat in the Daulatdia ferry ghat market. Local trader Chandu Molla purchased the katla for Tk 62,000, while the two pangas were sold elsewhere for Tk 16,000.
Ishaq Sardar, who is also the president of the local fishermen’s association, said he and six partners went out fishing around 11 p.m. Following their usual routine, they cast a ghaila ber, also known as a fashion net, at midnight in the Debgram Munshipara area, a few kilometres north of the ferry ghat. After waiting briefly, they sensed that something large was trapped in the net.
Upon pulling in the net, they first spotted a medium-sized pangas. As they continued retrieving the net, a large katla and another small pangas appeared. The rare combined catch of three high-value fish brought great excitement to the group. The fish were brought to market on Thursday morning, where the katla sold at Tk 2,700 per kilogram, the 10-kilogram pangas at Tk 1,200 per kilogram, and the 4-kilogram pangas at Tk 1,000 per kilogram.
“We work very hard, and some days we return without a single fish,” Ishaq said. “Catching three valuable fish at once felt like Eid for us. Even after giving a share to the arat, we are still very happy with the Tk 78,000 we received.”
Fish trader Chandu Molla of Daulatdia’s No. 5 ferry ghat said he bought the nearly 24-kilogram katla at the highest bid. He plans to sell it with a profit of at least Tk 100 per kilogram and has posted about the fish on his Facebook page while contacting potential buyers.
