, Nov. 25 -- Unregulated and unplanned fishing practices are rapidly depleting Bangladesh's marine fish stocks, posing a serious threat to both coastal and deep-sea fisheries, Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhter said on Tuesday.

"Bangladesh has enormous potential in marine fisheries, and we must utilise it wisely," she said at the closing ceremony of the Department of Fisheries' 'Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries' project held at a city hotel.

The adviser stressed the need for an integrated plan linking coastal and deep-sea fishing, saying that only four percent of women fishers have received fisher cards so far.

She described the small number as a positive step, while noting that women's contributions in fisheries rem...