KOLKATA: PM Narendra Modi, in an attempt to counter Trinamool’s portrayal of BJP as “an anti-non-veg party” in a state that loves its maachh-bhaat, accused Trinamool on Thursday of being unable to provide adequate fish to its people, prompting imports from other states.Modi spoke extensively on fish production in Haldia, where he addressed the first of Thursday’s three rallies, and accused the state of failing to achieve self-sufficiency in fish production. “Trinamool in 15 years could not even give you fish. We have created a separate ministry for fisheries,” Modi said, contrasting the Centre’s fish-friendliness with Bengal’s inadequacy.“Bihar and Assam, too, had to import fish. Now they have become self-sufficient and their fish production has doubled. Bengal, too, will become self-reliant if BJP is voted to office,,” he said.CM Mamata Banerjee has, on a number of occasions, said that BJP will impose restrictions on non-vegetarian food (including fish) — as it has in other states — if it manages to win the assembly poll.Central data show Bengal is India’s second-largest fish-producing state (after Andhra Pradesh). The 2024-’25 provisional data put Bengal’s fish production at approximately 23.7 lakh tonnes, with a large part (more than 20 lakh tonnes) owing to the state’s inland fisheries and aquaculture sectors. But, with fish being a part of the staple diet of (and a principal source of protein) for a large section of the population, Bengal gets a significant quantity (around 1.2 lakh tonnes in 2024-’25) from states like Andhra Pradesh and Bihar to meet the high demand.Modi — after his fish dig at Trinamool — moved on to BJP’s core theme, pitting the Trinamool’s rule of “fear” against the “trust” that people placed in BJP and describing the state as a “factory of infiltrators and “bombs”.
