Was that shark in your fish fry?

Ashok Purokait and Nayan Das,residents of Kakdweep,were arrested from Diamond Harbour in South 24-Parganas for ferrying the consignment. The duo,said to be part of a syndicate,have been remanded to 14-day judicial custody.

Interrogation of those arrested exposes the existence of a well-organised racket in Bengal’s coastal zone engaged in trading of the endangered species.

S B Mondal,chief wildlife warden of the state forest department,said they have heard about shark smuggling but this is for the first time they have come across processed shark being smuggled to other states.

Forest officials could gather from interrogation that processed shark fillets have found a market in foreign countries like Hong Kong,China and Dubai.

Even in Bengal it might have replaced Bekti for the sheer price difference between the two. While Bekti fillets,according to them,sells for Rs 600-700 per kilogram,shark could hardly cost Rs 300 to Rs 400 per kg.

Deepika Roy,district forest officer of South 24-Parganas,said they are getting tip-offs that fish smuggling rackets are active in the fishing ports in South 24-Parganas’ Namkhana,Frazerganj over the past one year.

Forest officials,however,said smuggling of fish,especially dolphins and other dry fish,from the harbour port has been in vogue for years.