Fishing in Pakistan

Fishery and fishing industry plays a significant part in the national economy of Pakistan. With a coastline of about 1,120 km, Pakistan has enough fishery resources that remain to be developed. Most of the population of the coastal areas of Sindh and Balochistan depends on fisheries for livelihood. It is also a major source of export earning.

Fishing industry is managed by the Fisheries Development Commissioner (FDC) under the Ministry Food, Agriculture Livestock (MFAL) of Government of Pakistan. The office of the FDC is responsible for policy, planning and coordination with provincial fisheries departments and other national and international agencies such as Asia-Pacific Fishery Commission. The marine subsector is overlooked by Marine Fisheries Department (MFD).

The Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) is engaged in the research of the industry. Some universities in the country are also involved in basic fisheries research.

Resources

Pakistan has many marine and inland fishery resources. The potential was estimated at 1 million tonnes/year from the marine subsector alone. The commercially important resources include near 250 demersal fish species, 50 small pelagic fish species, 15 medium-sized pelagic species and 20 large pelagic fish species. In addition, there are also 15 commercial species of shrimp, 12 of cephalopods and 5 of lobster. The effect of the Indus River Delta on the marine resources of the coastline of Sindh is substantial, as this river system has been transporting enormous quantities of nutrients and sediment to the continental shelf for centuries. Pakistan has an extensive inland water areas system, which is mainly dominated by the Indus River. These water bodies, depending on their type, possess varying potential for development of the inland and aquaculture subsectors. Inland water bodies, like dams, water locks, reservoirs, rivers, lakes and ponds cover an area of approximately 8 million hectares.

Marine varieties

The shrimp variety includes the species of Penaeus indicus and Penaeus monodon among 12 other. Surveys in the Arabian Sea indicate that commercial species of crustaceans like shrimps and lobsters are overexploited. Crabs, cephalopods and other molluscs are an unconventional resource. However, there is a potential in the export market as a substitute for these. Demersal fish resources show the signs of being exploited, hence only limited expansion of catch is possible in future. There may be a possibility of expanding the catch the small pelagic fish resources by venturing further offshore. It is very much likely that the fishermen would have to consider using new fishing methods in order to achieve this. As for the larger variety of pelagic fish, especially Skipjack tuna and its relatives, are available in the Exclusive Economic Zone of Pakistan in the Karachi District. Fishing for these usually result in by-catches of marlin and shark species. Local fishing fleet commonly harvests the species of Frigate mackerel, Indian mackerel, Spanish mackerel, barracuda and dolphinfish. The production figures of 2006 showed overexploitation relative to maximum sustainable yield level. A large variety of mesopelagic fish exist just off the continental shelf and are barely exploited. These resources are prime candidates for conversion to fishmeal for use in poultry and aquaculture but no commercial use is available in the country. Mussels, oysters, clams, seaweed, kelp, sea urchins and other marine resources also exist in Pakistan but further research data is required in order to evaluate the feasibility of propagating the mariculture of these varieties.

Subsectors

Marine subsector

Pakistan has a continental shelf area of 50,270 km² and coastline length of 1,120 km. The total maritime zone of Pakistan is over 30 percent of the land area. The coastal belt is characterized by a meshwork of estuaries and creeks with mangrove forestry that serve as nursery grounds for species of finfish and shellfish. In 1958, the first modern fish harbour was constructed at the Karachi District. Later, the fleet expanded and is now mostly mechanized.

Harbours

Karachi Fish Harbour is the biggest and oldest of its kind in Pakistan, being used by all types of fishing boats. Currently more than 4,000 fishing craft are based in it. At present, it can be assumed that the harbour caters for the needs of near 75 percent of the local fleet.

The major fish harbours of Pakistan are:
*Karachi Fish Harbour handles about 90% of fish and seafood catch in Pakistan and 95% of fish and seafood exports from Pakistan.
* Karachi Fisheries Harbour is being operated by Provincial Government of Sindh.
*Korangi Fish Harbour is being managed by Federal Ministry of Ports & Shipping.
* Pasni Fish Harbour being operated by Provincial Government of Balochistan.
* Gwadar Fish Harbour being operated by Federal Ministry of Communication.

Methods

;Shrimp fishery
The shrimp fishery is very meaningful because of foreign exchange earned and employment produced from it. It is only permitted in province of Sindh. Commercial shrimp trawling started in 1958, after the MFD introduced mechanization of larger fishing vessels. Now almost all of the shrimp trawlers are equipped with winches for net hauling. However, shrimp can also be caught by the use of cast net, which is locally termed 'thukri'. The catching is mainly carried out in shallow depths from October to March. It is also caught in eustaries and brackish waters from July to September. The catch is then processed frozen for the objective of exporting to North American and European Union markets.

;Tuna fishery
The fishing of tuna varieties is another appreciable aspect of the industry that is carried out by artisanal fishing vessels. Usually, the fleet shoot the gillnets in the evening and fetch them the next morning. The main target are the pelagic species with higher commercial values. The catch is exported as chilled to neighbouring country of Iran through informal channels for canning purposes. This fetches more profit than if exported to Sri Lanka in dried and salted form.

;Benthic fishery
The deep sea resources remain comparatively unexploited because local vessels are neither suitable nor equipped for deep-water fishery. The idea has motivated entrepreneurs to augment their deep-sea fishing craft for use of the resources. Small-scale benthic or demersal fishery is most common in coastal inshore waters. Fishermen use nylon gillnet, locally termed 'ruch', with a mesh of about 150 mm long. Benthic varieties include the marine jewfish, croakers, grunters, snappers, groupers, ribbonfish and pomfrets.

;Pelagic fishery
A small-scale pelagic fishery is in operation in Sindh, using special nets, locally termed 'katra'. Fishing is carried out from 'hora' boats - wooden sailboats with pointed ends, a broad breadth and long-shaft outboard engine. In depths shallower than 20 m, shoals of clupeids, especially the Indian Oil Sardine, are usually intended. Such operations are mainly based at Ibrahim Hydri and Chashma Goth villages. The desirable months are from October to November and February to April. The catch is the prime candidate for conversion into fishmeal.

Vessels

As of 2000, the number of docked fishery vessels was near 6,000. The two main types of fishing craft include:
*Mechanized docked boats: There are over 4,000 boats of this kind registered, which constitute shrimp trawlers and as well as gillnetters. Both are also locally made of wood, according to traditional design and fitted with 80–220 hp diesel engines. The average length of a trawler is 10–25 m while that of a gillnetter is 15–35 m. For hauling, many trawlers have a transom stern. Gillnetters are pointed at both ends and the net is pulled over the side. Freezing vessels also operate in the EEZ and all their catch is exported.
*Mechanized sailboats: Made of wood and equipped with two or more outboard engines, but generally smaller than docked vessels, they are locally called 'hora' boats. Most of these sailboats now operate in freshwater bodies. 'Doonda' boats are custom-built fibreglass scrapped lifeboats, with an average length of 7–10 m and 22–33 hp engines. These boats are able to function in up to 20 m depth. As of 2006, there are over 2,000 active boats of this kind.

Inland subsector

Freshwater capture fisheries are dominated by the Indus River and its tributaries. The fish fauna of the Indus system in its northern part is cold-water type, while the greater middle and southern parts of the system are warm-water zones. Fisheries in rivers and reservoirs account for more than 80 percent of total inland fish production. The riverine fishery management system is operated mainly by provincial fisheries departments. They enforce regulatory laws that restrict catch by size of fish and establish closed seasons.

Lakes

In the Sindh alone there are more than 100 natural lakes of different sizes covering an area of about 100,000 ha. Among them Haleji lake (1,800 ha) West of Thatta, Kinjhar Lake (12,000 ha) North of Thatta and Manchar lake (16,000 ha) in Dadu District are quite important for fish production. Manchar alone supports 2,000 fishing families. Apart from these big lakes, a cluster of small lakes extend over 40,000 ha. The natural lakes in Punjab cover about 7,000 ha. Some of the lakes, such as Namal lake (480 ha), Uchhali lake (943 ha), Jahlar lake (100 ha), Kallar Kahar

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