Bhubaneswar/Paradip, June 27: Hilsa has leapt out of the fish lovers’ platter in the peak season.

A sharp decline in the daily catch has put a four-digit price tag on the monsoon delicacy, putting it beyond the reach of the middle class gastronome.

“One kilogram for Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200 is absurd. We have fish two to three times a week but have not been able to afford hilsa so far. The ones available for Rs 600 are limp and very small in size,” said 40-year-old homemaker Sasmita Mullick, who eyed the silvery fish for some time and grudgingly settled for some pomphret and prawns at the Unit-IV daily market in Bhubaneswar.

The daily consignment of hilsa to Bhubaneswar is nearly 300kg, said a commission agent of one of the 38 wholesale seafood distributors at the market.

“Low catch has squeezed supply this year and, so far, the stock has been coming from Balasore alone. The superior quality hilsa is exported to Bengal while the smaller or rejected ones are sent to Bhubaneswar and Cuttack,” he said.

The fishing hub of Paradip is witnessing a never-before-seen crisis with a kilo of hilsa available in the Rs 800 to Rs 1,500 range. “Fishermen are hardly able to net hilsa. Traders are making losses as few people are eager to buy the fish at such exorbitant rates,” said All Odisha Traditional Fish Workers general secretary Narayan Haldar.

Experts feel rising pollution level in water bodies connected to Mahanadi river and a truant monsoon has resulted in the disappearance of hilsa.

Fishermen say sea voyages over five to six days barely fetch them five to 10kg of hilsa.

“Each voyage costs about Rs 10,000. But we are hardly able to catch any hilsa,” said fisherman Bibhisana Das.

“The hilsa yield per metric tonne from Paradip and adjoining Kendrapara has been plummeting consistently, from 522 in 2010 to 348 in 2011 and 229 in 2012 to just about 10 so far this year,” said Paradip additional fisheries (marine) officer Ranjit Keshari Dash.

Fishermen dispose of their yield through auction in Paradip fishing harbour. Less than 10 per cent catch is sold in local markets in Kujang, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur.

A bulk of the produce is dispatched to Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.

Unlike previous years, export to Bengal from Paradip has almost come to grinding halt this time. Bengal traders have so far shied away from buying due to hilsa availability at cheaper rates elsewhere.

However, traders from Vishakhapatnam, Srikakulam and Rajmahundry in Andhra Pradesh have evinced interest in procuring the Paradip hilsa.

“While in wholesale trade, hilsa fetches Rs 500-600 per kg, the stock dispatched to Andhra gives us at least Rs 150 more per kg,” said All Odisha Trawler Operators’ Association chief Sumant Kumar Biswal.

Though the yield in fishing hubs of Dhamra (Bhadrak) and Balaramgadi and Kansaphala in Balasore is slightly better, the overall catch has been dwindling as compared to previous years. A one-kg hilsa is being sold in Balasore at Rs 1,200-1,400. One weighing between 600 to 750gms is priced at Rs 700-800.

“We keep a profit margin of just Rs 50 to Rs 100,” said Santan Behera, a fish seller of Motiganj market.

While trawler owners blamed the hilsa drought on “no floods in the last two years”, traders said most of the catch was being sent to Digha in Bengal, which had a “good fish landing facility”.

“In Digha, the consignment is immediately sold in cash but within the district one has to wait for wholesale lifters to pay the money,” said fish trader Purna Mohanta.

On the other hand, Ganjam imports hilsa from Bengal and a full kg costs Rs 800 to Rs 1,000. “Fishermen sometimes catch small hilsa weighting 200 to 250 gms in Rushikulya river mouth. So, we are raising a mangrove forest in the coast, which may boost hilsa production here,” said Rabindranath Sahu, secretary of Rushikulya Sea Turtle Protection Committee.

 

You are a

Traditional hilsa lover if you prefer to have it cooked in a thin mustard-based gravy. Or if you like to have it deep-fried to go with your bowl of pakhala (fermented rice). The roe (fish eggs) are a delicacy too, usually mixed with chopped onion and garlic and deep fried like pakoras

Hilsa connoisseur if you take the trouble to plan out special preparations such as bampha (steamed) ilisi (hilsa wrapped in banana leaves and steamed), or ilisi maacha mahura, cooked with chana dal, potatoes, yams (desi aloo) and colacassia (saru)

Don’t believe in the hilsa hype?

Try it out like a regular fish curry, prepared with the standard onion- ginger-garlic paste.
Someday, you will warm up to the real taste!

Biggest hit

Sorisa ilisi jhola is the most popular preparation in Odia homes

Why: It is a gravy preparation that is low on oil and less spicy, and goes very well with rice

Sea fish

Migrates to river to lay eggs; Born in the river, the young hilsa swims back to sea

Best catch

When they come to the river to spawn

Docs say

The omega 3 fatty acids abundant in the hilsa reduce cholesterol

Kitchen must-knows

Dos

Buy fresh fish. Ilisi that appears white is always better

Grind the mustard, a must for bampha ilisi, in a mixer for a finer paste

Ensure that the mustard paste does not become bitter. Grind it with salt and green
chillies

Don’ts

Use refined oil; the cooking medium must be mustard oil

Scrimp while pouring the oil — there should be a little oil floating on top of the gravy

Sprinkle too much salt; ilisi itself is salty