A prized catch! Palghar fishermen sell 157 Ghol fish for a whopping Rs 1.33 crore

Known as ‘Sea Gold’, the Ghol Fish - a native to the Indo-Pacific region - is considered one of the most expensive marine fish available

Pic courtesy: Pixabay (representational purpose)

For Chandrakant Tare, a fisherman from Palghar, Maharashtra, it was indeed a prized catch. After a long break due to COVID-19 restriction, Tare went fishing on August 28, and he had no idea how his luck was about to turn. Around 157 Ghol fish caught by Tare and his crew near Wadhwan fetched them a whopping ₹1.33 crore.

Tare and around eight crew members set off sailing for fishing on August 28 late evening. They went to Wadhwan, which is 20 to 25 nautical miles, on the boat Harba Devi. As people learnt about their catch, eager buyers reportedly gathered and the fish were sold to the highest bidder, who were traders from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar reportedly. Some news report even claimed that each fish was sold for Rs 85,000, though there was no confirmation on this.

The Ghol fish (whose scientific name is Protonibea diacanthus) is known for its medicinal value and pharmaceutical companies are known to use the fish to make dissolvable stitches. It is a type of blackspotted croaker fish with huge demand in countries like Indonesia, Thailand, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. It is also known as ‘Sea Gold’ and the native to the Indo-Pacific region is considered one of the most expensive marine fish available.

According to a report in Hindustan Times,  Hitendra Naik, a resident of Satpati in Palghar further spoke on the use of the fish. “It is also used for wine purification in Singapore,” he said. The website also quotes Tare as saying that this huge sale will put an end to his financial worrries.