SHILLONG/ TURA: The state government is trying to find those involved in the formalin racket that forced it to ban import of fish for 15 days on July 23 but it will be a Herculean task for the authorities.
Fisheries Minister Comingone Ymbon has directed officials in the department to crack down on the people who were involved in injecting formalin into imported fish.
The minister said on Friday that Andhra Pradesh, which is the biggest importer of fish to Meghalaya, has denied any involvement in the formalin racket and hoped that the state government would find the owners of the fish in which traces of the chemical preservative were found.
But Ymbon admitted that finding the trail of formalin would be difficult for officials as local fish traders do not maintain transaction records.
The 15-day ban on sale of imported fish will end on August 7 and before that the minister will hold a review meeting. He informed that the department was checking local fish too for formalin.
After the ban on imported fish, local produce are being sold in the market. “The tests conducted so far (on local fish) have been negative,” Ymbon said.
In South West Garo Hills, tests conducted for formalin in fish have been negative so far. Deputy Commissioner Ramkumar S had ordered the district fishery officials to conduct tests and inspection in all markets to prevent storage and sale of imported fish. To ensure safety, even fresh local fish were tested.
Ramkumar had also ordered surprise checks at godowns in Mahendraganj and other thickly populated areas bordering Assam to ensure strict compliance with the ban on sale and storage of imported fish.
The fish being sold in South West Garo Hills are all local produce and the district is self-sufficient in meeting market demand.
The total amount of fresh fish being sold is more than 15 tonnes, most of which are from the fishery ponds.
Aqua Mission-II
Ymbon said the government is contemplating phase II of the Meghalaya Aquaculture Mission this year.
“In these five years, 25,000 plus forms were issued for construction of fish ponds. Out of these, only 17,000 plus fish ponds have been constructed. Few ponds are still under construction,” Ymbon said.
When asked about the number of ponds, the minister said as per the government scheme, 60 percent is a subsidy, 25 percent is loan from banks and 15 percent is contribution of fish farmers.
“Banks had given approval to only those fish farmers who were able to meet the criteria,” he added.
