Porbandar:
Every year hundreds of Indian fishermen get caught illegally entering Pakistani waters. In Porbandar alone, 474 Indian owned fishing boats have been confiscated for encroaching the maritime border since 2003. Each boat can cost up to a lakh and a half rupees.
Fishermen say they have no choice because there are no fish left to catch in the waters off the State's coast.
23-year-old fisherman Vir Abbas has been arrested twice and detained for over 20 months for fishing in Pakistani waters.
"We have to work, be it here or anywhere else. We need to work. We need to earn in order to survive," said Abbas.
Day after day, men like Vir, venture out into the tempting sea filled with riches beyond their wildest dreams, in search of a livelihood for their families, aware that they may not return home to their loved ones and that they could become pawns in the political game of Indo-Pak politics.
"Earlier we could find fish here within 12 hours, we could earn some money but now it is very difficult here. We have to go far away. It is very expensive," said Jignesh, a fisherman from Porbandar.
Gujarat state has branded itself as an attractive destination for foreign investment, but fishermen say instead of reaping the benefits, they are paying a high price.
"There is so much pollution. There are industries all along Gujarat's coastline and they are all dumping their pollutants in the water. All the fish are dying," said Manish Bhai Lodhari, Secretary, Fisherman Boats Association, Porbandar.
But the fishermen are not completely free of blame. The nets they use are so fine that that they indiscriminately catch everything in its path. Even the smallest baby fish that are of no commercial value to the fishermen are carelessly discarded later. Years of such practices have contributed to the over fishing of the Saurashtra coast. This despite the government laws that state that the mesh size of fishing nets should not be longer than 40 mm.
The government has now restricted the registration of new trawlers but, the waters may have been affected beyond repair.
Fishermen say they have no choice because there are no fish left to catch in the waters off the State's coast.
23-year-old fisherman Vir Abbas has been arrested twice and detained for over 20 months for fishing in Pakistani waters.
"We have to work, be it here or anywhere else. We need to work. We need to earn in order to survive," said Abbas.
Day after day, men like Vir, venture out into the tempting sea filled with riches beyond their wildest dreams, in search of a livelihood for their families, aware that they may not return home to their loved ones and that they could become pawns in the political game of Indo-Pak politics.
"Earlier we could find fish here within 12 hours, we could earn some money but now it is very difficult here. We have to go far away. It is very expensive," said Jignesh, a fisherman from Porbandar.
Gujarat state has branded itself as an attractive destination for foreign investment, but fishermen say instead of reaping the benefits, they are paying a high price.
"There is so much pollution. There are industries all along Gujarat's coastline and they are all dumping their pollutants in the water. All the fish are dying," said Manish Bhai Lodhari, Secretary, Fisherman Boats Association, Porbandar.
But the fishermen are not completely free of blame. The nets they use are so fine that that they indiscriminately catch everything in its path. Even the smallest baby fish that are of no commercial value to the fishermen are carelessly discarded later. Years of such practices have contributed to the over fishing of the Saurashtra coast. This despite the government laws that state that the mesh size of fishing nets should not be longer than 40 mm.
The government has now restricted the registration of new trawlers but, the waters may have been affected beyond repair.
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