QUETTA: The Baloch­istan government on Wednesday decided to ensure a complete ban on illegal fishing in the province’s waters and asked the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) and the Sindh government to stop Sindh’s fishermen from ent­ering Balochistan’s waters.

The decision was taken at a meeting presided over by Balochistan Chief Secretary Motahar Niaz Rana to review steps taken to stop illegal fishing by foreign trawlers and Sindh’s fishermen.

The chief secretary informed the meeting that the prime minister and the chief minister had issued special directives to curb illegal fishing in Gwadar.

He said the Sindh government and the PMSA must ensure that the fishermen from the province are prevented from fishing in Balochistan, as it was a violation of provincial boundaries. “The Sindh government should ask its fishermen not to violate the provincial jurisdiction of 12 nautical miles,” he said.

The meeting also decided that a working group comprising the director general of fisheries, PMSA, Pakistan Coast Guards representatives and others would be formed to prevent illegal fishing in Gwadar. The group would submit its report in a week.

Published in Dawn, December 9th, 2021