The mobile aquarium that carries live fish upto 500 kg. Picture by Gopal Senapati

Bengalis like their fish fresh and live. But all they get is frozen stuff transported from faroff places. To tickle the tastebuds of the fish-loving people, Pijus Das of Glare Glass Furniture on Netaji Subhas Road hit upon an idea of constructing a glass aquarium large enough to transport freshwater fish live.

Das had already been commissioned by the Bihar government for such an aquarium. An eight feet by four feet glass aquarium tank of three feet height atop a Mahindra Bolero pick-up van was made to transport fresh water fish from ponds to markets. The tank was designed to have a steady supply of oxygen in it and with vacuum doors on the top which help in keeping the temperature and air pressure inside the tank constant. The weight of the glass tank alone is 1,000 kg and it will hold nearly 2,000 litres of water and another 500kg of fish. “The fish can be kept alive for at least 30 hours. The tank has been designed to carry fully grown fish like rohu and katla,” said Das.

While working on the order, Das has also thought about introducing this in the Howrah and Calcutta markets. “I think it will be successful in our state as well. People in the city and town areas always like their fish fresh, which is not available in the market. Most of the times, they are forced to buy frozen fish that has been caught many hours back. With such tanks, live fish caught from ponds can be transported to the cities. I am willing to make such tanks if I get support from the government or private players,” said Das. After completing the order, Das had also taken the mobile aquarium to the Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) to show it to the mayor. “The mayor was not in office at that time so he could not see it,” said Das.