SrinagarWith the pollution and unchecked encroachment the water bodies in the state are under severe strain and the immediate fall out has been the sharp decline in the fish production. The decline has led to sharp rise in fish import which is now touching 5,000 tons per year.
Vital water bodies, including River Jehlum, Anchar, Wullar and Dal lakes besides other major streams in the state are natural abodes to varieties of fish, but the continuous encroachment and pollution has drastically impacted the production.
Not only has the declining production hit the consumers and the market, but the livelihood of thousands of fishermen has also been negatively impacted.
In the Asias largest fresh water lake, Wullar, in Bandipora district fishermen say livelihood of around 15,000 people is associated with fishing in the lake.
Abdul Majid, a fisherman, said fifty years ago, the lake would produce 10,000 metric tons of fish which would be sold in the local market and also a huge quantity would be exported to other states.
Majid rues that the fish production has declined and the fishermen like him find it difficult to makes their ends meet by this trade any more.
The fishermen said that World Bank released 387 crore for Wullar conservation but the lake has seen no improvement in its environment as the Forest Department did not spend the money on the lake protection.
Director Fisheries, R K Pandita when contacted, said fish production in the water bodies in the state has decreased owing to increasing pollution and encroachment of water bodies.
Pandita said the people living around streams, lakes have become reckless and insensitive to protection of water bodies.
Household solid and liquid waste is recklessly dumped in the water bodies. Due to pollution, the seeds of the fish do not sustain to grow into fish. Though big fishes manage to survive in polluted water, yet small fishes and seeds cannot live in such an environment due to decreasing biological oxygen demand, Pandita said.
Citing example of Wullar lake, the director fisheries said the production has declined but blamed fishermen living around the lake besides floods for it.
He said that due to floods, large quantity slit, sewage got accumulated in the water bodies which affected the fish production.
Encroachment of Wullar and Dal lakes had reduced its area and also human interference has polluted its water which hit fish, he said, adding that the state produces 20,000 ton of fish per year against the annual consumption requirement of 25,000.
The director said that rather than harming the water bodies, fishermen should become guardians of lakes from pollution and encroachment.
He said the department has launched programme from 2015 to increase fish production by supplying seeds to the water bodies and also producing huge quantities of fish in the farms spread across the state. (KNS)
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