Bangshi river is one of the most important rivers in Dhaka district. Since my childhood angling in Bangshi river at Savar has been always exciting to me. I was born and raised in a village beside Bangshi. The Bangshi, which we see today is just a decayed reminder of a wonderful river which once was full of life and strength. This river was full of different kinds of fishes and exotic animals like Ganges dolphins. I have seen fishermen catching hilsa (not in a huge quantity though) from this river even in mid 80s. Anyways, as a dweller of riverside village, angling became a favorite activity of free times. I caught fish in this river uncountable times in different methods. Those good old days have long gone. Pollution have taken everything. Like many rivers of Bangladesh, the Bangshi river also has become a victim of industrial pollution, river grabbing, siltation and many other man made factors.
The river has already lost it glory. During dry season it becomes so densely polluted that no life form can be found in this river. But during monsoon when fresh water emerges and washes the pollution away , many spices of fishes enter this river for spawning. They stay in the river and surrounding flooded water-lands until February. During this time pollution comes down in the Bangshi river from various sources and slowly fishes disappear. So, anglers get a chance to try their luck in the Bangshi river during this time. This year I have planed to explore this river a little bit more extensively than previous times and for unveiling some of it’s hidden treasures to the readers.
