KARACHI, June 1: A two-month ban on catch of shrimps in the coastal-belt of Sindh has been imposed under Section 25 of the Sindh Fisheries Ordinance, 1980, to ensure the conservation of juvenile species.

Under the order, anyone violating the provisions of the ordinance and rules is liable to be prosecuted. The ban is mandatory for fishermen to stop hunting during this period.

The ban is imposed every year on catch of shrimps within the coastal belt of 12 miles in Sindh because of breeding season. It was officially imposed on June 1 which will continue till July 30.

However, the ban will be relaxed for those vessels which were on hunting trip. They will be allowed marketing facility at Karachi Fish Harbour for four days.

A group of fishermen had always opposed the ban because they said it would give them an economic loss.

They also argued that if the ban was necessary, why it is not being imposed on deep-sea sector. It is for this reason that the two month ban had seldom been allowed to complete.

According to fisheries experts, the ban is necessary to ensure normal growth of fish and shrimps in the creeks and safety of aqua-culture, saying the ban is itself in the interest of small fishermen.

But the indigenous fisherfolk communities claim that a number of fish species, which were in abundance in the past, have now completely become extinct because of over-fishing in the coastal waters of Sindh by mechanized and deep-sea trawlers.

They maintained that the centuries-old fishing methods would not allow hunting during hatching season for the fish and traditional fishermen had been careful not to catch small fish.

The local communities allege that the dangerous and destructive fishing nets like Bholo and Gujjo are also a source of destruction for juvenile species.

They also alleged that although the Sindh government had imposed a ban on the use of destructive nets in coastal creeks, their use is prevalent in the creeks.

Moreover, they added that over-fishing by the deep-sea trawlers and mechanized fleet had also caused a tremendous loss to the deep-sea resources.