DHAKA, May 29, 2024 (BSS) - The severe cyclonic storm “Remal” has caused a huge economic loss of over Taka 900 crore to the fisheries and livestock sectors across the country, according to an official report here today.
 
In the latest report compiled by the Department of Fisheries and Livestock Sector, a huge economic loss of Taka 906.63 crore was caused in the fisheries and livestock sectors due to the devastative cyclone “Remal” in most of the coastal districts in the country at the beginning of this week.
 
Due to the severe cyclone, 15 people were killed, and about 800,000 people in coastal areas were forced to leave their homesteads and seek shelter. The wind speeds at the time of the main impact were between 90 and 120 kilometers per hour, along with a high tide up to 10 feet that broke the embankment and submerged a vast area of the coast, which resulted in damage to houses, crops, and livestock, according to the Ministry of Disaster Management.
 
According to the fisheries department, the severe cyclonic storm Remal caused a financial loss of Taka 858 crore, or 67 lakh and 28 thousand, to the fisheries sector, which includes the inundation of ponds, enclosures, hatcheries, fisheries, shrimp, fish fries, and crabs due to heavy rain, floods, and tidal surges at eighty-eight upazilas of sixteen coastal districts under the Khulna, Barisal, Chattogram, and Dhaka divisions.

The cyclone affected fisheries of over 20,523 metric tons, shrimp of over 7,943 metric tons, fish fries of over 1627 metric tons, crab or Kuchia of over 253 metric tons, and post-larva (PL) of over 590 lakh in eighteen districts under Khulna, Barisal, Chattogram, and Dhaka divisions.

The infrastructural loss of the fisheries sector was over Taka 61.59 crore at 468 unions of eighty-eight upazilas under the four divisions, said the report.

The estimated loss of the fisheries was over Taka 330.76 crore, shrimp of over 339.29 crore, fish fries of over Taka 98.62 crore, crabs or kuchia of over Taka 22.09 crore, and post larva of over 14.73 crore. The cyclone affected 663 trawlers and boats at a cost of 2.67 crore and damaged fishing nets worth over Taka 1.73 crore.
 
Division-wise economic loss calculated that the financial loss of the fisheries sector in Khulna division was over Taka 722 crore, over Taka 98.44 crore was in Barishal division, over Taka 18.72 crore was in Chattogram division, and over Taka 19.33 crore financial loss took place in Dhaka division, the report displayed.

In addition to this, the estimated loss of the livestock and poultry sector was Taka 47 crore (97 lakh), which includes damages to livestock farms, live cattle, and poultry farms under the three coastal divisions of Barishal, Khulna and Chattogram.