Fishermen are gearing up to resume netting, as the 22-day ban on catching, selling, transporting and hoarding of the delicious hilsa ends on Friday midnight.

Fishermen in different districts are preparing their fishing nets and trawlers to head to the rivers after 12:00 am.

The law enforcers seized huge quantities of mother hilsa and fishing nets, trawlers in different parts of the country for catching hilsa defying the ban.

Fisheries department, upazila and district administrations, police and Coast Guard personnel carried out regular drives to make sure that the ban was implemented strictly.

During the ban, around 50,000 fishermen remained unemployed and were allocated 25kg of rice each, which was not enough for them, said local fishers.

Taukir Ahmed, an official from the control room of Chandpur district fisheries office, said around 212 fishermen were sent to jail during the ban period in 178 cases.

Besides, 41,855 metres of current nets were seized and destroyed, said Chandpur Naval Police head Mohammad Kamruzzaman.

The 22-day government ban on hilsa catching, selling, hoarding and transporting came into effect on October 7, with a view to boosting its production.

The ban covered hilsa sanctuaries in six districts -- Barishal, Chandpur, Laxmipur, Bhola, Shariatpur and Patuakhali.

Hilsa, the national fish of Bangladesh, is recognised as a certified patented product of Bangladesh. The marine fish goes to rivers in Bangladesh to lay eggs.

The fish is very popular both in Bangladesh and West Bengal. About 75 per cent of the world's hilsa is netted in Bangladesh.