Has the city by Ganga lost its taste for Padma-r ilish? Doubt after tepid welcome
Times of India | 20 September 2025After the lukewarm response from customers on Thursday, vendors at Lake Market and Gariahat and Maniktala were conservative and picked up stocks of 5 kg to 25 kg from the Howrah wholesale market on Friday. The market for Bangladeshi hilsa may become further skewed following reports of a large consignment of hilsa arriving from Gujarat. Though considered inferior in taste to the Bangladesh variety, wholesalers and retailers felt shoppers were more likely to pick up Gujarat hilsa as it would be within budget.
Against Bangladeshi hilsa that is retailing for Rs 2,000-Rs 2,500/kg for sizes in excess of 1 kg, the Gujarat variety is expected to retail for Rs 800-Rs 1,100 a kg.
Incidentally, the city also has a ready stock of frozen hilsa from Myanmar that can be released in the market if needed at the rate of Rs 1,500 a kg.
"We don't expect any softening of Bangladeshi hilsa prices. At the current rates, there will be very few takers," said Fish Importers' Association secretary Syed Anwar Maqsood, who plans to take a call on further imports after tracking the demand here until Monday.
Only 20 tonnes of hilsa arrived across the Benapole-Petrapole border since Wednesday after the first consignment of 50 tonnes arrived on Tuesday, Petrapole Clearing Agent Staff Welfare Association secretary Kartick Chakraborty informed.
Amar Das, a veteran fish trader at Lake Market, said initial enthusiasm fizzled out quickly and there was simply no excitement among buyers. "If I get decent-sized hilsa from Diamond Harbour, I can purchase 100-kg stock.
This time, I've barely picked up 20 kg of Bangladeshi hilsa. There's no reason to stock more when customers aren't showing interest."
Romesh Das, a trader from Gariahat, agreed. "I've only bought a small quantity. I think the season has already passed its peak. The price of Bangladeshi hilsa is quite steep. On the other hand, I'm selling fresh hilsa from Odisha at Rs 1,850–Rs 1,900 a kg," he said.
In Maniktala, Raju Das added: "Although the structure of the fish is good, the sizes are smaller and the price is quite steep.
If we had this price for larger sizes, it would be justified. If there were some Diamond Harbour hilsa, there would be no buyers for this Bangladeshi variety."
Most buyers found the price sizzling hot. Rakhi Das, a homemaker who went to Maniktala market, expressed doubt: "I'm not even sure if this is really Padma hilsa. It looks a lot like the Myanmar variety I've seen. Prices should have been lower since the season is almost over."
But there are some like Ayushman Mukherjee, a regular buyer at Lake Market, who find the emotional tug of Bangladeshi hilsa irresistible. He called his vendor in advance and coughed up Rs 2,050 for a fish weighing just over 1 kg on Friday.
