Fishermen hang by a thread as fish get scant

HYDERABAD: Majeed Motani, a veteran fishing boat captain from Ibrahim Hydri, Karachi, said the marine ecosystem was shrinking fast, which often meant livelihood uncertainty for a large number of fishermen.

“Increasing sea intrusion, changing marine temperatures, and depleting soil fertility is forcing people to migrate from the Indus Delta to other coastal villages in search of better livelihood opportunities and safety,” he said, while asking where should the fishermen go.

He listed the issues faced by his community, such as uncertain fish catch, increasing marine pollution, and depleting mangroves that not only shelter against storms, but also help maintain fishing grounds.

Motani expressed nostalgia about days when they were prosperous and often stayed at the islands with their families to accomplish various tasks.

“Our women are skilled in preparing a variety of seafood for the crew members. We still don’t catch many diseases, thanks to high intake of seafood, which is relatively healthier and high in protein,” he said, while admitting that excessive marine pollution along with the current fish freezing techniques had diminished the quality of seafood

“Some fish species that we were fond of, have either vanished completely or have become rare in our marine waters. The reasons may be over fishing, increasing marine pollution and changes in sea temperature,” he shared.

“Now, we buy frozen fish, which is not as delicious as fresh seafood we used to eat long ago.”

Traditional fishing boats used to be smaller and often returned to the shoreline the same day. The bigger boats stayed out longer in the open waters, and returned after four to five days. During that time, the fish was dried on those long-haul boats.

Now, with bigger and more sophisticated boats, fishermen can stay out in the sea for even a month. Fish during this time is kept in cold boxes. As a result, the taste and quality often deteriorates, and the product is not as fresh as it used to be when fishermen used traditional methods.

Reports gathered from the community activists living near local jetties reveal that larger boats carry around 400-500 ice blocks, which they consider enough for the whole month when staying out in the sea. They have separate tanks fixed inside the vessels to keep the fish in freezing environment. Small boats carry 30-40 blocks for a few days stay in the sea. Fishermen said they could not maintain the quality of seafood products after freezing.

Larger boats also carry huge machines to crush ice for preserving seafood product for several days. Besides ice, larger boats also take 4,000-5,000 litres of diesel to avoid any problems during the long stay in the ocean.

Fisheries sector holds importance for its role in food supply, food security, and livelihood provision. Pakistan’s seafood products are also exported to many countries around the world, including the European Union.

Some research reports show that fish quality deteriorates after the freezing process, both short- or long -term. According to them, freezing changes the physical properties of fish such as weight, colour, and texture.

Nawaz Dablo, a community activist in Village Rehri Mayan, who goes to open sea with a larger group fisherman for fish catch, said, “Ever since the new fishing season started in the first week of August, boat crews have not earned a proper share because of low catch during routine trips.”

He said the reasons behind declining fish catch might be different, but senior fishermen believed it could be because of the frequency of cyclones last year, which affected fish productivity. “Now we just started witnessing an improvement in the situation, but the situation remains uncertain for boat crews,” he added.

Dablo was unhappy about the dumping of municipal contaminants in the sea, which affected seafood productivity as well as its quality.

Gulab Shah, a community activist from Keti Bunder, Thatta district said coastal communities were on the frontlines of climate change impacts. They face warning calls about frequent cyclones, sea level rise and changing rainfall patterns.

They have lost fertile agriculture land, natural grazing fields and underground water quality.

The coastal people depend on river water, which flows occasionally for a short period. Dependence on contaminated ground water means the coastal communities bear a huge cost on deteriorating health of family members.

Shah said hardly 40 years ago women also had an active role in the fishing families. They used to supply water to boats at jetties, knitted fishing nets, and pealed shrimps for selling in the market. Women also used to stay at the islands for drying fish catch and shrimps, while also cooking for crew members. That close-knitted environment has now disappeared.

Only some families in Jati neighbourhood, Sujawal district and parts of Thatta and Badin preserve shrimps and fish for using during the ban on fishing in June and July. Some women also used to operate boats for fishing with family members. But emerging technology has affected the role of women.

Fishermen activists point out that siltation has also been reduced at the mouths (creeks) of Indus River due to disruption in the natural flow.

As a result, the river has lost its productive natural creeks that used to smoothly flow into the sea. Those creeks were also used as natural reserves of fish, where boats went for catch.

Coastal communities urged the government to reduce pollution and to avoid destructive fishing practices to save this major source of food supply and livelihood. They also want the government to play its part when it comes to equipping communities to be resilient in the face of natural disasters and other calamities.