Greetings everyone! This Mohammad Sumon! from #Bangladesh

^{Hello everyone! I hope you all are doing well by the grace of the Almighty.}

^{Spreading positivity and creativity through my words.}

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A Variety of Fresh Fishes of the Meghna River

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Today I will tell you the story of a man whose life struggle and honesty have deeply touched me. Md. Rubel Hossain Bhai is one of those people who, even outside the glamorous corporate world around us, struggle to survive honestly every day in very simple ways. Rubel Bhai is a shopkeeper I know very well. It is difficult to understand how good and kind he is as a person without visiting his shop or talking to him.

The place is a very familiar intersection in our Bhola—crossroads, Kheyaghat Road, Bhola Sadar, Bhola. Amidst the hustle and bustle of everyday life, Rubel Bhai's fish shop sits on a corner of Kheyaghat Road. Many people sell fish. Why do people come back to Rubel Bhai's shop again and again? The answer is very simple to me—the gentle smile on the face of this good man I met and the 100% guarantee that the fish is not adulterated or formalin-free.

^{Cover: The glistening silver sheen of fresh Hilsha at the market}

In this post, I am showing you an overall view of Rubel Bhai's fish shop. As you can see from the picture, it is a very simple, temporary wooden shop. Yet, every corner of it bears the imprint of his hard work day and night. The person wearing the white shirt in the video is Md. Rubel Hossain Bhai.

I have seen from close up how hard-working Rubel Bhai is! Even though today we see him sitting calmly in the fish shop, the path behind his arrival in this position was not smooth at all. At one time, he worked on a launch. He spent quite a bit of his life fighting the turbulent waves of Meghna-Tentulia. Later, he was forced to quit that job when the situation changed. But he is not one to be discouraged. Due to the harsh demands of life, he started driving an auto-rickshaw on the roads of Bhola to provide food for his family. He worked hard in the sun and rain. And finally, after overcoming all obstacles, he started this fish business. His long life struggle and story of turning around will inspire any person.

^{A varied display of fish, featuring the famous local Taposi fish}

Being a well-known shopkeeper, I know what is the biggest specialty of Rubel Bhai's fish business. He does not sell any cold storage or stale fish. Rubel Bhai collects all kinds of fresh fish that are caught every day from the mighty Meghna River flowing around Bhola's lap, directly from the ghat. He has a golden eye for recognizing fresh fish from the river.

^{Freshly caught river fish arranged systematically for the customers}

In the pictures of this post, I have tried to see that the fish are arranged very neatly in different groups on a round plate. On the left side of the plate are medium and large silver-colored Hilsa fish. Their silver scales are bright and fresh. These hilsa fish are the pride of Bhola. In the middle are some large, white-colored poya and coral fish. On the right side, a bunch of medium- and small-sized golden-yellow fish are kept, which are mainly known as saltwater fish.

^{Fresh & Real river poa fish}

Among the fish, the silver hilsa fish kept in Rubel Bhai's shop is particularly eye-catching. It is not without reason that many of us think that the price of fish in areas near rivers or ghats may be much lower. But I have personally observed that in the villages where these fish are actually available directly from the river, the price of fish in the local market is, on the contrary, a little higher than in Dhaka! And the price of our real and fresh hilsa from the Meghna River is always much higher.

Despite the high price of Meghna hilsa, one human quality of Rubel Bhai impresses me. Whenever I go to buy fish from him, due to being familiar and being a good person, he always keeps the price a little lower for me. Where it is difficult to reduce a single taka in the market, his sincerity really touches my heart. Apart from hilsa, the bodies of the fresh poya and coral (vetki) fish from Meghna in his shop are also very shiny and fresh. Rubel Bhai chooses the best fish for everyone, whether the buyer is known or unknown.

^{Premium and fresh Hilsha fish on display}

Not to mention a special golden-yellow fish (known as fapsa or taposi fish) kept in Rubel Bhai's shop. These fish are usually saltwater fish. The fish themselves are very small but clean.

This is Rubel Bhai's income promotion on the long journey from the launch staff to the autorickshaw and from Prakash to today's small fish shop. This rise in commodity prices has made it difficult to earn health every day. Many times, the buyers are expensive, but Rubel Bhai never does. He says with a smile:

Brother, there is no harm in looking at a lot less, but people can live in peace with the good fish from me.

In this era, where brothers will choose the path of immorality in the hope of more profit, Megh's presence is mixed there; Meghna Prakash deserves to notice this simple and humane thought for a pure and fresh collection.

^{My selfie in front of the store is a bit blurry because of the night}

Price List of Fresh River Fish from the Meghna (Fish Price List)

The price per kilogram of fish available at Rubel Bhai's shop is given below (but prices fluctuate):

Fish Name	Price per KG (BDT)	STEEM Price (approx)	USDT Price (approx)
Large Ilish from Meghna River (1kg+)	1600 BDT	316.83 STEEM	13.05 USDT
Medium Ilish (700g-800g)	1200 BDT	237.62 STEEM	9.79 USDT
Fresh Poya Fish	550 BDT	108.91 STEEM	4.48 USDT
Golden Phapsa / Taposi Fish	450 BDT	89.10 STEEM	3.67 USDT

^{Conversion rates used: 1 USDT equals 122.62 BDT & 1 STEEM equals 5.04 BDT.}

Note: Being close to the river and the fish ghats, the local market demand causes prices to fluctuate or stay a bit high daily. However, as a familiar customer, Rubel Bhai always offers me a slightly discounted price compared to the regular market rate.

Some of my feelings: while buying fish from Rubel Bhai's shop, I felt that we don't go to big shopping malls or supermarkets and haggle for a single taka. But when we come to marginal sellers like Rubel Bhai on Kheyaghat Road, who have fought with their lives to this point and are feeding us fresh fish from our river, we argue a lot for a few taka. However, the honesty and hard work of these people have kept our society going.

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