Hilsa diplomacy back on plate: B’desh clears 1,200 tonnes ahead of Durga Puja
Times of India | 9 September 2025
Kolkata: The Mohammad Yunus-led interim govt in Bangladesh gave its nod on Monday to the export of hilsa to India ahead of Durga Puja. This continues the practice that deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina had initiated with the culturally significant fish to improve relations between the two countries.
"Bangladesh govt just decided to export the quintessential #fish to #India ahead of #festival seasons, as a mark of enduring friendship," Bangladesh high commissioner Riaz Hamidullah posted on X.
The Yunus govt had exported hilsa to India last puja as well. But there were apprehensions this year due to the sharp downturn in relations after India imposed trade restrictions on Bangladesh this May.
In the notification issued on Monday, Bangladesh's commerce ministry announced the decision to allow the export of 1,200 tonnes of hilsa to India during the festive season.
Bangladeshi fish exporters have been asked to submit expressions of interest by 5 pm on Aug 11.
Last year, 2,420 tonnes of exports were permitted, but only 577 tonnes actually reached India, the lowest in five years. Though the amount permitted for exports is half that of last year, poor landing of hilsa in Bangladeshi waters in recent weeks has led to doubts over the actual quantity that could be exported this year.
Though the latest notification does not mention when the export order would be issued and until when export will be permitted, Indian importers hoped that it would be done on Aug 11 or latest by Aug 13.
Aug 12 is Friday, a holiday in Bangladesh.
Expressing delight over the Bangladesh commerce ministry's notification, Fish Importer's Association secretary Syed Anwar Maqsood, who wrote to the Bangladesh commerce ministry and foreign ministry for allowing exports, said that if the approval is granted by Aug 11, the first consignment will arrive in Kolkata on Aug 13.
"Hilsa from the Padma is a delicacy for fish lovers in Kolkata.
The hilsa export decision, a goodwill gesture by the Md Yunus govt, should stand in good stead in improving bilateral ties. If all goes well, the first consignment in trucks should arrive in Kolkata this weekend," said Maqsood.
Former PM Hasina, who was ousted in the uprising in Aug 2024, announced a blanket ban on hilsa exports in 2012. Seven years later, in 2019, she allowed the export of 500 tonnes of hilsa before Durga Puja in a move referred to as ‘hilsa diplomacy'.
While the entire amount cleared for exports reached India in 2019 and 2020, actual exports declined thereafter. Maqsood hoped this trend would be reversed this year as the permission may arrive with over a fortnight to go before Durga Puja.
Also, since the ban on hilsa fishing sets in only around the second week of Nov, there will be plenty of time for trade to continue.
While the minimum export price has been fixed at $12.5 or Rs 1,100 per kg by the Bangladesh govt this year, it was $10 per kg last year. Maqsood said the price of fish in the wholesale market in Kolkata would be around Rs 1,500-1,600 per kg. That could translate to a retail price of around Rs 1,800-2,200 per kg.