‘The sea may swallow Thatta, Badin, Sujawal in 30 years’
June 06, 2014
Karachi
The theme of World Environment Day 2014 cannot be more relevant to Pakistan, or to be specific, to Sindh and Balochistan – the two provinces that have the Arabian coastal belt of the country.
This year the United Nations has dedicated the international day to the impact of climate change on small islands. And Pakistan has dozens of small islands with thriving fishing communities, or it could be argued that the country used to have communities once living on such islands.
Environmental experts say that due to the rising sea level, a mass migration of fishermen has been under way for the past two to three decades, which has ruined the once prosperous communities. And the government is indifferent to the development.
“We have no precise data on the migration of fishermen from the islands to the mainland; there are only estimates,” says Naseer Memon, chief executive officer of Strengthening Participatory Organisation, an NGO working with the marginalised communities of the country.
Memon says the fishermen from these islands have migrated not only to Karachi but also to Punjab and other parts of the country in search of freshwater. “The islands are bereft of freshwater, which has affected not only fishing opportunities but also other livelihoods, like agriculture and livestock, forcing them to move out.”
Experts say the islands had distinct cultures rooted in traditions built upon hundreds of years, which have decayed over time.
According to one estimate, 3.5 million acres of arable land have been gobbled up by the sea in three districts of Sindh: Thatta, Badin and Sujawal. And at least 800,000 fishermen from these areas have shifted to different parts of the country – Karachi being one of the main centres.
“The fishermen from these areas have settled in Ibrahim Hyderi, Rehri Goth and many other localities,” says Muhammad Ali Shah, who heads the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF).
Shah says the migration from Keti Bandar, Kharo Chan and other areas affected by sea intrusion continues without the government taking any measures to stop it.
He warns that if the trend continues, in the next three decades Thatta, Badin and Sujawal will be swallowed by the sea.
He blames the dams and barrages made in the area for the crisis, as these structures hinder the flow of freshwater to the wetland communities. “Pakistan was once a country where the river used to flow into the sea, but it’s the sea that is now flowing into the rivers and making the life of the people miserable.”
The theme of World Environment Day 2014 cannot be more relevant to Pakistan, or to be specific, to Sindh and Balochistan – the two provinces that have the Arabian coastal belt of the country.
This year the United Nations has dedicated the international day to the impact of climate change on small islands. And Pakistan has dozens of small islands with thriving fishing communities, or it could be argued that the country used to have communities once living on such islands.
Environmental experts say that due to the rising sea level, a mass migration of fishermen has been under way for the past two to three decades, which has ruined the once prosperous communities. And the government is indifferent to the development.
“We have no precise data on the migration of fishermen from the islands to the mainland; there are only estimates,” says Naseer Memon, chief executive officer of Strengthening Participatory Organisation, an NGO working with the marginalised communities of the country.
Memon says the fishermen from these islands have migrated not only to Karachi but also to Punjab and other parts of the country in search of freshwater. “The islands are bereft of freshwater, which has affected not only fishing opportunities but also other livelihoods, like agriculture and livestock, forcing them to move out.”
Experts say the islands had distinct cultures rooted in traditions built upon hundreds of years, which have decayed over time.
According to one estimate, 3.5 million acres of arable land have been gobbled up by the sea in three districts of Sindh: Thatta, Badin and Sujawal. And at least 800,000 fishermen from these areas have shifted to different parts of the country – Karachi being one of the main centres.
“The fishermen from these areas have settled in Ibrahim Hyderi, Rehri Goth and many other localities,” says Muhammad Ali Shah, who heads the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF).
Shah says the migration from Keti Bandar, Kharo Chan and other areas affected by sea intrusion continues without the government taking any measures to stop it.
He warns that if the trend continues, in the next three decades Thatta, Badin and Sujawal will be swallowed by the sea.
He blames the dams and barrages made in the area for the crisis, as these structures hinder the flow of freshwater to the wetland communities. “Pakistan was once a country where the river used to flow into the sea, but it’s the sea that is now flowing into the rivers and making the life of the people miserable.”
