West Bengal fisheries department has proposed to give legal protection to Hilsa Fish.
The aim is to arrest its dwindling population.
Fisheries department is speaking to the state home department to bring about provisions in CrpC and IPC.
With the formal introduction of the provisions, Hilsa will become the first fish variety in the country to get legal protection.
It will lead to arrest or fine anyone for selling, catching and buying small Hilsa.
Hilsa is commonly called “khoka ilish” in Bengal.
Hilsa fish is on brink of extinction due to decades of migration barriers, over-fishing and pollution.
Earlier as a protection measure, state government had declared five hilsa sanctuaries on the Hooghly river from Farakka to Sagar .
Covering a stretch of 250 km, here, fishing has been banned between June-August and October-December.
