A group of fishermen in Pakistan become the victim of an Environmental disaster
The ongoing climate change crisis almost threatens the ancient culture of one of Pakistan’s Fishing communities to date. The Future of this floating village upon a lake is becoming uncertain due to the scarcity of fish.
The fishing community named Mohana People lives on the floating village, a lake known as Lake Manchar situated in Sindh Province of Pakistan. The floating village is only made up of houseboats where the fishermen live. Several generations of Mohana’s are used to habitat this way.
The recent deterioration of the Manchar lake ecosystem has led to increasing economic losses of the fishermen. Husna Mai, a resident of the floating village, said, “This is where I was born, and this is where I got married.
My children have also grown up here. I have eight children. My husband is deaf, that’s why I go fishing with him. When I get one kilo of fish, I sell it and buy bread for my children. “
Another name of Kashmir for its mesmerizing beauty is” Earth Heaven. A part of this heaven remains in Pakistan. Even if you go there, you have to fascinate by its charm.
The absence of essential services is also visible in this boat village. For cooking, only one stove can occupy in the single room boathouses. Woods and chalk needed to collect from the surrounding bushes of the lake for fueling the stove.
Because of the extreme weather conditions, it’s becoming more challenging to stay in wooden boats. Kheri Mai, a resident of the floating village, said “Our children’s and belonging become wet when it rains or storms.
We can’t even cook at that time and have to starve for the rest of the day”. She added that the lake’s water is not suitable for drinking. They can’t even afford clean drinking water. She expresses grief, saying, ‘Who can tolerate the hunger of children! No one!.’
If we buy water, we will not have enough money to buy food for our children. As a result, they are being forced to drink contaminated water. There is no hospital or school nearby, even not a water filter. “
Once Manchar Lake was famous for its biodiversity. People, fish, aquatic plants and birds used to live together in a sound environment. However, in the 1990s, the dumping of chemical waste used in agriculture and industrial wastes polluted the lake water.
Due to such pollution, the number of fish has also decreased a lot. As a result, the Mohandas are forced to leave their habitat. Fish trader Ghulam Akbar said,
“Every day sent 20 Datsun trucks full of fish before the water became polluted; in other words, about 36,000 kg of fish was caught in a day. That number has now dropped at 1,100 to 1,600 kg.”
