Beware of fish traders in city markets selling Thai magur (catfish), popularly known as hybrid magur, for prospective buyers may get into trouble with the police. The state government has banned the culture of this edible aquatic creature in West Bengal.

According to state fisheries minister Kironmoy Nanda, an administrative order was issued in this respect several months ago.

Since Thai magurs are still being sold, field officers of the fisheries department and Benfish have been directed to beef up their surveillance on the culture and sale of this particular variety of catfish. However, there is no restriction on the culture and sale of the indigenous variety of magur, he added.

?Our extension officers have been directed to lodge an FIR against anybody involved in the culture or sale of Thai magurs,? said joint director of fisheries Sukhendu Chakraborty on Monday.

He said the state fisheries department has already conducted a series of awareness campaigns among fishermen against the culture of the Thai magur. This variety is a notorious glutton that devours fish of every kind in a waterbody. They are fed the intestines of chickens so that they grow fast. Whereas a Thai magur weighs a kg in six months, the desi variety gains only 300 g during the same period.

The Haryana fisheries department has requested the state fisheries department to supply seeds of desi magur and golda chingri. The state fishermen?s cooperatives? federation or Benfish has been awarded the contract.

The orders have been placed because the people of Haryana are fed up with rohu and other carp and would like to go in for desi magur and golda chingri instead. ?The price to be charged will be a rupee a seed,? said Benfish managing director Uday Sankar Nandy.

According to Chakraborty, the state government is banning the culture of Thai magur at a time when desi magur is scarce in West Bengal. The demand for magur has suddenly increased in north Bengal, too.