Only small boats allowed to fish, larger vessels remain grounded

HYDERABAD: Fishermen owning smaller vessels along the coastal villages are enjoying a little catch for survival, as they were granted permission to continue with their livelihood activities by the government on April 5, 2020.

There are strict rules to follow. The fishermen should leave from the jetties at 6am and return by 7pm the same day. They have to also follow the social distancing protocols on the boats and wear masks too.

Local fishermen had demanded the government to allow them to operate their boats to avoid prolonged uncertainty in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

However, reports reveal that hundreds of fishermen are still sitting idle at home and are faced with food insecurity. Some who are able to catch fish are facing difficulties in accessing the market to sell the product.

Noor Muhammad Thahimor from a coastal village near Jatti, Sujawal district said small boats carrying four-five crew members move daily for a catch after concession. They bring the fish to the jjetties, but the situation is tough because of the inaccessibility of the market.

“After selling whatever little we can, we put away the remaining fish out to dry for future consumption,” he informed. “We can sell the dried fish after things return to normal.” He said some boats also brought a little quantity of shrimps, which they sold at low rates to local traders, who paid Rs200-Rs250/kg instead of Rs500-Rs600/kg in normal days.

But despite this, they are relieved that they can at least continue their work in these conditions. There is a large number of local jetties, from where only small boats, carrying four-five crew members move to the sea, while crews associated with larger boats are still waiting for the government to lift restriction, so they may resume their activities for survival.

Umar Mallah, from the fishing community of Badin district, said small boats have resumed activities and bring little catch daily, which they sell to middlemen in the area. According to him, these middlemen always pay some amount in advance to the fishermen to ease their families’ difficulties. These traders usually supply the product to major markets.

There are two major jetties on the Badin coast authorised by the government where fishermen can land catch for trade. Otherwise, each village has a makeshift jetty for anchoring boats and landing catch.

Some fishermen said freshwater has also benefitted them, as they can catch more fish along the beaches. Akhtar Shaikh, another community activist from Ibrahim Hydri, said there were almost 37 small and larger jetties in the coastal villages, from where smaller boats leave to catch fish from nearby beaches for survival.

“Even though they are not receiving reasonable rates for their catch, they seem happy to at least continue with their livelihood activities.” Native Indigenous Fishermen Association (NIFA) President Asif Bhatti, a native of Bhitt Island, Karachi called this decision a mockery of fishermen.

He said the community representatives have not been consulted before taking this decision. He said more than 80,000 fishermen were associated with boats operating from Karachi Fisheries Harbour (KFH) and local jetties near the coastline were still waiting for such a decision to join activities.

Bhatti said the 12 hour time for boats to travel and return back was limited. “Each boat may take at least 5-6 hours to travel 7—8 nautical miles for harvesting nets at potential fish reserves for catch and pull the same after two—three hours.”

He said the officials who took the decision to allow fishing for only 10 hours, were obviously not aware of the time it took to go out to the sea, caste a net, and return with a haul. “Most boats wait for a long time till their nets have caught enough fish, so they return on the second day to sell fish at the market,” he explained.

He demanded the government to announce a package for the fishermen associated with larger boats till the lockdown so their families could survive in these harsh times.