This comes as a surprise to most people living in India's Eastern states, but the stats used here have been sourced from Bangladeshi mainstream media.

In sharp contrast, recent steps taken by GOI to increase overall fish production as well as revenue earnings, have worked well so far. The total production from the East coast states — Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh West Bengal and Odisha — generally exceeds 1 million tonnes annually.. During the last couple of years, the performance of East coast-based fishermen have been spectacular.

According to Indian official reports, between 2022 and 2024, production in Tamil Nadu rose from 5.6 to 6.8 lakh tonnes, while Andhra Pradesh increased its catch from 1.5 to 2.5 lakh tonnes. Similarly, West Bengal, having a shorter coastline shared with Bangladesh, reported an increase of 35% in 2024, its production rising from 1.7 to 2 lakh tonnes.. Odisha reported an increase from 1.3 to 1.5 lakh tonnes during the same period.

Much of the credit for this goes to lakhs of Indian workers in the fishing sector.-. Conservative estimates put the number of workers and employees at all levels of the fishing sector between 28 and 30 million people in India.. Also,, it cannot be denied that that several major schemes to help workers at the grassroot level by GOI, and the Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi to improve their earnings and security have gone a long way in protecting them generally.

Among varieties commonly caught in bulk by East coast fishermen there are Hilsa, Bombay duck mackerels, besides different varieties of shrimps and croakers.

In sharp contrast, official circles in Bangladesh have expressed their deep concern about a sustained and alarming drop in the overall fish production. Coastal operations accounts for about 15% of the aggregate fish production in Bangladesh. According to recent reports in the Dhaka-based press, in recent times, there has occurred a steep fall in the quantity of the fish caught. In 2018, Bangladesh recorded a production of 158,100 lakh tonnes which dropped sharply to 33811 tonnes by end 2024-25.

Experts in Bangladesh, while explaining the steady, inexorable decrease in production, have listed several negative factors that might have led to a phenomenal distortion in the usual birth and death cycle among major marine fish varieties. There has been a major change in the daily weather patterns locally, as well as globally. Over the years, pollution has emerged as a major problem in coastal fishing. The Bay of Bengal has been long treated as the unofficial garbage duping zone by major liners and navies.

The somewhat dismal consensus among Bangladesh officials is that it might be difficult to pinpoint any one single reason for the slide in coastal shipping. A number of factors may have contributed to the present crisis. On its own, it would be difficult for Bangladesh to change an overwhelmingly negative situation, going forward. Clearly effective and meaningful co-operation with other major countries might bring about some short term improvements.

Following repeated protests by India and other countries, the spell of reckless' dumping' in the Bay of Bengal has been somewhat checked but not stopped totally. In part the lack of trust and co-operation among the directly involved countries has also impacted the local eco-system. India for instance has strongly protested the habit of some Bangladeshi operators to scuttle vessels damaged by accidental fires or other mishaps, within the bay itself.

At times, such dumping has taken place within the river Hooghly, causing occasional blockage of essential shipping activity! Only last week, a Bangladeshi ship was scuttled well within Indian waters, as its crew had overloaded the vessel with fly ash!

Such illegal practices not only upset shipping schedules, but by clogging up the sea bed with the wreckage of damaged vessels of boats, and their assorted equipment, they play havoc with navigation at times. The main cause is the known tendency among major shipping lines to secure adequate compensation from insurance authorities.

More importantly such incidents together with occasional leakage of crude and other forms of fuel oils etc cause the destruction of entire colonies of countless varieties small fish. Coral reefs and other forms of marine life are destroyed, permanently at times. The level of oxygen in the seawater also drops, endangering marine life further. .

While citing weather-related factors, Bangladeshi experts also took note of the continuing illegal practice of shady shipowners, some of whom are actively engaged in the smuggling of drugs, and weapons for 'rogue regimes' and human trafficking.

It is not possible for Bangladesh authorities either to control such negative factors which plagues the prospects of the fishing industry and international trade as a whole. Dhaka's repeated urgings in different world fora to more powerful nations to bring down the level of carbon dioxide, has not made much impact/, The country continues to pay a heavy price for the recklessness of advanced countries .

At present, with Bangladesh registering the highest inflation in South Asia, millions of people may suffer from protein deficiency if the yield from the seas remains static or declines further. Regarding better co-ordination and cooperation among major industrial powers to bring down the damage caused by global warming, the decision announced by the US under President Donald not to encourage any fresh initiative to improve the world's climate, is not exactly good news.

India's position is relatively better. The country's fish production has risen by 4.8% on a y to y basis. A much increased annual budgetary support in excess of Rs 27,000 crore also helped the fish/related sector. (IPA Service)