50 tonnes of B’deshi hilsa arrive, to reach mkts today
Times of India | 18 September 2025The fish was expected to reach the wholesale markets in Kolkata on Wednesday morning, and retail markets in the evening, but was delayed because of the Vishwakarma Puja holiday.
"Altogether, 10 trucks laden with hilsa crossed over from Benapole to Petrapole. The first lot of consignment — eight trucks carrying 37,460 kg of hilsa — arrived late on Tuesday night after a brief delay due to paperwork at Benapole in Bangladesh.
The trucks, carrying loads between 1,400 kg and 6,660 kg, were cleared by Customs around 3 am," said Petrapole Clearing Agent Staff Welfare Association secretary Kartick Chakraborty.
The arrival of the hilsa has already created a buzz in Kolkata's fish markets. Amar Das, a trader at Lake Market, reported a surge in enquiries and advance bookings. "There is significant demand for Bangladeshi hilsa. Several customers have already made bookings to buy from me," he said.
Despite the excitement, traders are also mindful of the logistical challenges posed by the large consignment. The agreed quota of 1,200 tonnes of hilsa to be delivered by Oct 5 poses a major challenge.
Fish Importers' Association secretary Syed Anwar Maqsood said the large quantity of hilsa that arrived on Tuesday-Wednesday was the stock accumulated for the past three days, and that volumes would start dipping from Thursday as the fish catch in Bangladesh rivers was not very encouraging.
Maqsood, who is also the secretary of the Howrah Wholesale Fish Market, played a key role in convincing the Md Yunus-led interim govt in Bangladesh to continue exporting hilsa to India during Durga Puja.
"Let us make hay while the sun shines. I do not expect more than 500 tonnes of hilsa to arrive due to the short trading window and poor catch being recorded in Bangladesh. I hope the fish that arrives is of good quality and sustains buyers' interest," he said. He added the wholesale price of fish over 1 kg is expected to be Rs 1,500-Rs 1,700 per kg, which would translate to a retail price of Rs 1,700-Rs 2,000 per kg.
