HILSA LOVERS BEWARE OF “FAKE HILSA” IN NORTH BENGAL MARKETS

By R. Subrata (TNI Siliguri) ~ Edited By Pradiptamay Saha (TNI Siliguri)

Webdesk, TNI Siliguri, 25th June, 2015: The enthusiasm of the Bengali food lovers may surely come to an end after the outcome of yesterday’s find of two Hilsa type of fish near the 2nd Spur of River Tista at Jalpaiguri town. The initial reports said that the two fishes recovered dead in floating condition were not Hilsa but instead those are Chinese Herring in colloquial terms it’s known as ‘Toli Maach’ (Sc Name: Tenualosa Toli). These Toli fish is common in the North Bengal Rivers like Tista, Torsa, Mahananda, Kaaljaani, Atreyi etc. So far so good, it was okay. However, the question have arisen that, since it is very hard to spot the difference between a ‘Toli’ fish and a ‘Hilsa’ fish is there any possibility that the ‘Toli’ fish can be sold as ‘Hilsa’ in the fish markets of North Bengal and even in other areas too by the unscrupulous sellers. The answer is yes. TNI talked with Prof. Sudeep Barat, Head, Department of Zoology, NBU in this matter.

According to him “There is a high possibility of the ‘Toli’ fish being sold in the market as ‘Hilsa’ with high price. Since, both the fish belong to the same family, the retail buyers (common people) can hardly identify their real identity. However, taste can be a little bit different but by the time it can be questioned, the sale is over”. He further said that “Only the fisherman who catches those can perfectly identify the difference. Sometimes it’s even difficult for the sellers to spot the difference”. The main concern is the price and belief of the people especially the Bengali food lovers, who spend a huge price for buying ‘Hilsa’, instead get a fake one like this ‘Toli’ fish. TNI also talked to a regular fish seller (with the assurance of anonymity) from Subhashpally market “Yes, it’s true that ‘Toli’ fish are sold in the name of ‘Hilsa’, sometimes when there is a high demand and the stocks are limited we need to sell them to keep our customers relationship. We have to do it because every other seller does it”. However, the fish seller didn’t hesitate to tell how to spot the difference between the two. According to him “The only difference you can see is the freshness. More the Hilsa fish looks fresh, more the probability that it’s a local ’Toli’. The reason is an original Hilsa cannot be so much fresh at least in Siliguri markets”. Whatever, may be the logic behind, it’s now to be seen whether the normal ‘Hilsa’ fish lovers will remain complacent in buying a fake ‘Hilsa’ with a high price or they may find ways to create and raise their self awareness after all it’s the king of Bengali kitchen recipe called “HILSA”.

Graphics: TNI Creatives