HYDERABAD/SUKKUR: Various programmes were held in different parts of Sindh on Friday to highlight issues relating to the fisheries sector and woes of the fishing community to mark the World Fisheries Day.

A rally was taken out under the auspices of the department of freshwater biology and fisheries on the Allama I.I. Kazi campus of the Sindh University while the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) organised a separate rally in Hyderabad.

Participants in the rallies including teachers, students, fishery scientists, social workers, members of the fishing community and officials of the relevant departments, carried banners inscribed with slogans demanding conservation of marine resources for protection of human being, a strict check on overfishing and measures to control sea and river pollution.

SU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Imdad Ali Ismaili and chairman of the freshwater biology and fisheries department Prof Dr Naeem Tariq Narejo were among those who spoke at the campus rally, where importance of awareness about fishing resources, sustainable management and protection of natural fisheries resources was highlighted.

Prof Ismaili stressed the need for proper education, awareness and research to ensure protection of fisheries and other natural resources. He said mere slogans could not help achieve the goal.

He urged the government to introduce breeding technology and advanced fish farming techniques instead of depending on catch fisheries.

He also called for study and research to conserve indigenous fish species many of which, he said, were facing extinction. He said the fisheries department should chalk out programmes and schemes for the socio-economic progress of the fishing community.

Dr Naeem Tariq Narejo observed that the population of native fish species was on the decline because of proliferation of exotic species in major lakes and water bodies. “Alien species officially introduced in local waters have devastated the natural ecosystem and there is a dire need to control exotic species under a programme,” he said.

He suggested that the government work with fishermen on ways to enhance productivity of water bodies to ensure an uninterrupted lucrative livelihood for fishermen.

Dr Wazir Ali Baloch demanded a strict check on over-fishing by foreign and local trawlers as the trend had ruined coastal economy and devastated small fishermen.

PFF rallies

Fishermen from various districts of Sindh took part in a rally taken out from SP Chowk in Hyderabad to mark the World Fisheries Day. The rally was organised by the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF).

Carrying banners and placards, the participants marched up to the local press club and raised slogans against ‘ocean grabbing’ and demanded implementation of the international guidelines on safeguarding the rights of small fisheries.

PFF senior vice chairperson Fatima Majid, vice chairman Mustafa Mirani and general secretary Saeed Baloch spoke to them.

They said that the fishing community was facing depleting livelihood resources, displacement and food insecurity.

They demanded appropriate measures to protect their livelihood and improve their standard of living. They also criticised mega projects being executed along the Sindh coastline, and said that this would ultimately render them homeless or push fishermen settlements far away from the sea.

Groups of fishermen, including women and children, travelled to Hyderabad from Badin, Thatta, Sujawal, Sanghar, Jamshoro, Karachi and Hyderabad to take part in the rally.

SUKKUR: The World Wildlife Fund-Pakistan (WWF-P) in collaboration with the fisheries department on Friday organised a rally to mark the World Fisheries Day.

The participants, led by fisheries deputy director Ghulam Mustafa Gopang and WWF-P Sukkur site coordinator Ali Hassan Mahar, marched from Lab-i-Mehran to the Indus Dolphin Conservation Centre.

Speaking to them, Mr Gopang and Mr Mahar called for ensuring pollution-free water bodies to help marine resources grow naturally. They demanded strict measures against all practices by stakeholders that undermined fishermen community’s livelihood and the country’s marine resources.

They said every citizen should play his due role in keeping the environment, including water bodies, free from pollution.

Published in Dawn, November 22th, 2014