Fishing gears

· Fishing methods in the wetland varied according to the seasons and the local market demand which were influenced by different festivals and the special occasions at the local level.

· The main fishing gear used for fish harvest was encircling or drag net, gill net and cast net.

· The encircling net locally known as Ber/Beri jal was mainly operated in the post monsoon season and contributed around 55% of the annual fish catch. The berjal has a dimension of 200-210m length and 7-10m breadth with a mesh size of around 30-40mm. The berjal is mainly operated by 25-30 people. The targeted fish were big fish like rohu, mrigal, catla, silver carp, grass carp, common carp etc.

· Gill net locally known as phasajal contributed around 30% of the total fish catch. The gill net used in the wetland has a dimension of around 120 m length and 3m breadth with a mesh size ranging from 60 to 100mm. Gill net is operated in all the three seasons but it used to be operated more in the postmonsoon season. The fishing days of the gill net ranged from 25 to 55 days in different seasons in the wetland.

· Cast net locally known as khaplajal contributed around 15% of the total fish catch. The main targeted fish through gill net are catla, rohu, mrigal, small indigenous fishes etc.

· The SIF are mostly caught by gill net, push net, cast net, trap and lantern net.