The prices of local and fresh fish varieties have shot up while that of river fish has taken a plunge following the news of suspected Covid victims’ bodies floating in other states. Fish vendors are having a tough time selling catfish, bigger varieties of rohu and katla. But smaller and fresher varieties of fish are being sold faster. The prices of local varieties have gone up by Rs 150-200 a kg in the last four days, said fish traders. Times ViewThere needs to be widespread dissemination of correct information to preempt an avoidable distress in the demand-supply chain. Supplies, anyway, would have taken a hit because of transportation problems. Any further disruption would add to the chaos and has the potential to hurt people in the supply chain.
The demand for fish in the markets have remained high since Sunday with people keen to stock up to avoid making frequent trips to the fish markets “We anticipated the demand, so we activated local fishermen who catch in small quantities and sell on their own. We had done the same last year too. Such catches are now helping us,” said Subir Koley, a fish wholesaler at Lake Market. “Even on a Sunday we could not get the variety that people demanded. However, they bought the alternatives we had on offer. Bata, small prawns and Mourala were sold well. The price remained high though. Mourala was sold at Rs 400-450 per kg but our stocks were exhausted before we shut shops in the afternoon,” said Ashta Dhara, who has two shops at Gariahat and Kasba markets. The higher demand has pushed up the prices of local varieties. “Average prices of local variety rose by Rs 150 a kg in the last four days. If the parshe from the pond is sold at Rs 550-600, the river variety is priced at Rs 400. Local varieties like Rupchand and Tilapia (St Peter fish) rose by Rs 200 a kg,” said Amar Das, a fish vendor of Lake Market. Soumendra Bagchi, a retired professor of Manindra Chandra College, said, “I wanted to buy a Katla weighing 4kg for the whole week, but the fish available was below 3kg. So I bought bata, tyangra and mourala.”
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