KARACHI, Dec 11: A large number of fishermen observed black day and staged a protest rally against falling prices of fish and prawn at Ibrahim Haideri on Monday. Thousands of local fishermen belonging to Ibrahim Haideri, Rerhi, Chashma Goth and other fishing localities kept their fishing boats at seashore and staged a big protest rally on the call of Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum.

The rally participants marched about 15kms from Rerhi Goth to Ibrahim Haideri. They were holding banners and placards inscribed with slogans against cut in prices of fish and prawn.

Addressing the rally, PFF Chairman Muhammad Ali Shah, Haji Shafi Muhammad Jamote, Majeed Mootani, Yousuf Kudani, Abdullah Markhar and Ameer Bukhsh Jatt said that fish traders had deliberately cut the rates of fish and prawn drastically.

They said that prawn had been selling at Rs300 per kilogram in 1983, but presently its rate was Rs200 per kilogram. They said that the rate of diesel in 1980 was Rs3.5 per litre, which was now Rs38 per litre.

The fishermen said that the rate of fishmeal for poultry was dropped from Rs7 per kilogram to Rs3 per kilogram. They said that instead of local fishmeal meat-meal was being imported into the country for making poultry feed. They said that this grim situation was forcing local fishermen towards serious economic hardships.

They said that children of fishermen was now facing starvation and if the government failed to take preventive measures, hundreds and thousands of fishermen would be forced to take to the streets.

The protesting fishermen also observed a sit-in, closing Ibrahim Haideri-Rerhi Goth Road for four hours. A black day was also observed in all local fishing villages and localities, where shops and markets were closed. —PPI