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CHANDPUR, March 11, 2026 (BSS) - The Coast Guard arrested 10 fishermen along with 127.5 maunds (approximately 5,100 kilograms) of jatka during a raid in Haimchar upazila of the district. 

A mobile court later sentenced the fishermen to seven days of simple imprisonment and imposed fines, confirmed the Coast Guard Station in Chandpur this afternoon.

According to officials, a special operation was carried out by the Coast Guard in the Meghna River near Char Bhairavi in Haimchar late Tuesday night. During the drive, Coast Guard personnel searched a suspicious wooden boat and recovered 5,100 kilograms of jatka valued at around Taka 35.7 lakh. Ten fishermen were detained from the boat during the operation.

Following the raid, Executive Magistrate Sajid Haque of the Chandpur Deputy Commissioner's Office conducted a mobile court and fined each of the detained fishermen Taka 2,000 and sentenced them to seven days of simple imprisonment. The fishermen were later handed over to the police.

The seized jatka were distributed among local orphanages, poor families and needy people in the presence of Chandpur Sadar Upazila Senior Fisheries Officer Mirza Omar Farooq.

To protect hilsa fry, the government has declared a 70-kilometre stretch of the Padma-Meghna river in Chandpur a sanctuary for two months-from March to April. During this period, all types of fishing in the river, including catching hilsa, as well as the buying, selling, storing and transportation of fish, are strictly prohibited.