River stream reaches delta, as exploiters grab water bodies

HYDERABAD: The River Indus stream as usual, carrying more water, has reached the Indus Deltaic region, the ultimate end in to the sea, filling canals, tributaries and scattered freshwater lakes along both sides from Guddu Barrage in Kashmore district to Kotri Barrage in Jamshoro district. But it seems certain landlords and politically influential people have taken hold of lakes in their areas and started depriving fishermen of their ancestral source of income.
The River Indus is the main source of water for the entire agriculture-based region of the province as it feeds all the lakes and reservoirs, as well as the irrigation canal system.
There are 1,209 waters registered with the provincial government’s irrigation and fisheries departments. Of these, reports reveal only 100 major water bodies have survived to provide a source of living to the fisher folk. The rest have either degraded because of persistent water shortage or due to receiving poisonous wastage of sugar mills. Long ago, a few water bodies located in the forest areas were directly linked to the River Indus, but since there is no forest, these areas have been turned in to cultivable land. There is, however no authentic data about these waters located in different districts of the province, their status of receiving water, fish count, or wildlife.
Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) Vice Chairperson Mustafa Meerani said a majority of lakes, located on both banks of the river and its tributaries have been occupied by certain people. He claims to have received complaints against influential persons, who violate the law which abolished the contract system on lakes a few years ago, and allowed fishermen to catch freely.
Gulab Shah of Keti Bunder in Thatta district and Noor Muhammad Thahimor of Jati, Sujawal district hold the same opinion. They said the fishermen have lost their sources of livelihood at the hands of parliamentarians and influential persons. This is the season when the river streams reached in to the sea, filling the lakes located on its natural route with more seed of fish. And fishermen carrying nets usually move to their waters to get their livelihood. But now they are facing threats all around by certain politically influential people, who have occupied the waters by deploying armed persons.
“These armed persons don’t even allow artisans, who want to collect vegetation and valuable plants for making mats and other roofing materials,” said Gulab Shah.
PFF gave a fresh call at its recent meeting held in Hyderabad to launch a campaign to free the waters. The meeting participants represented their home districts, and identified the waters in northern and southern districts like Shikarpur, Kashmor, Sukkur, Larkana, Jacobabad and Qambar-Shahdadkot, Nawabshah, Sujawal, Jamshoro, Sanghar, Badin and other areas. In these areas, the influential have deployed their armed men, who either snatch the entire catch from poor fishermen at gun point or force them to accept cheaper rates for their catch. They pose as if they hold complete control and ownership over these waters.
The PFF activists have decided to remobilise the communities residing at marine and inland waters in Sindh to save their inherited natural sources of income.
This challenging situation has forced several families, who had been earning their livelihood from these waters for centuries, to stay idle at home to avoid risking their lives.
The meeting, presided over by PFF chairperson Muhammad Ali Shah, and attended by Mustafa Meerani, Gulab Shah, Noor Muhammad Thahimor, Makal Shah, Ramzan Mallah and others expressed their concerns over the frightening situation created by certain politically-motivated criminals. They asked why the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), FIA, Rangers, and other law enforcing agencies had given a free hand to such corrupt officials, politicians and hooligans.
The PFF meeting discussed the provincial Sindh government decision that abolished the contract system and replaced it by issuing licenses to bona fide fishermen, residing at these waters. The move was appreciated widely by the communities, who heaved a sigh of relief. The government ordered to remove deployment of armed persons so the poor fishermen may go to their jetties and waters freely to continue their work.
The meeting decided to initially collect data of occupied lakes with operating fishing boats and dependent communities so the organisation may forward it to authorities concerned and human rights organisations.
Following this, they have designed a strategy to collect data at district-level to launch a broader level struggle from Kashmore to Keti Bunder and Karachi to save natural waters, which provide livelihoods to the communities and maintain the ecology.