Sopore, a historic town in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, is not only distinguished for stationing Asia’s second-largest fruit market, but is also famous for its delectable and diverse fish species.
To mention, the boom in the businesses fetched a boost to the economy of the town to the extent giving it a name of ‘Chota London’.
Sopore’s fishing sector is one of the most robust in Kashmir, with around 1800 licensed fishermen.
According to official estimates, Baramulla district produces 1100 tonnes of fresh water fish annually.
Assistant Director Fisheries in Sopore Ghulam Jeelani Pandit told Rising Kashmir over phone that there are several kinds of popular fish species in Sopore that are found in Wular Lake and river Jhelum. These species include Schizothorax species and Carp species.
“We have around 1800 registered fishermen in Sopore who contribute to the economy of UT by producing more than 1100 tonnes of fishes. However during the winter months, the fish count decreases to some extent,” AD Fisheries said.
President Fisherman Association of Sopore and Bandipora Ghulam Hassan Bhat told Rising Kashmir that the varieties of delicious fish found mostly in river Jhelum are KaesherGaad (Kashmiri fish) and Punjabi fish (Punjab Gaad) which are famous throughout the valley.
However, he said that the fishermen community is facing a lot of challenges as the fish count is decreasing both in Wular Lake and river Jehlum.
“The illegal sand extraction by the sand mafia has changed the topography of water bodies which in turn is affecting the fish. Earlier we used to catch around 20-25 kilograms of fish per day but now 2-3 kilograms of fish is a big deal,” Bhat told Rising Kashmir.
Farooq Ahmad Dar, 56 a fisherman from ZurreManz village in the outskirts of Sopore said that the fishermen community is facing tough challenges and they don’t want their children to continue with this profession.
“The fish count has decreased to a level that it is impossible to sustain in this modern world. Earning 300-400 a day won’t suffice your needs. On a good day you catch 2-3 kilograms and on days you don’t even catch a single fish,” Dar added.
He blamed the pollution for the decrease in fish count in the water bodies of Wular Lake and River Jehlum.
“Kashmir is known for its Sopore fish. Customers come to us from Kashmir’s South and Central regions. However, animal carcasses dumped into the river Jhelum from Srinagar to Baramulla and waste strewn on the banks of water bodies that subsequently seep into it are posing challenges for fish spawning , ” he added.
Farooq said that the fish usually breed near the banks of water bodies but people and administration dump garbage on the banks of water bodies which in turn create problems for the fish.
“When fish don’t have a safe place to breed, how can we expect a bumper fish count? Right now we are only producing 30% of fish to the valley. Rest of 60-70% come from fish farms and outside the state. The trend is scary and the government has to empower the fishermen community in order to make J&K self-sufficient in fish production,” Dar further added.
He however regretted that the government has not extended any help to their community, forcing them to fall further into poverty or look for alternatives.
“People associated with the fish business are living a miserable life. The fisheries department is providing Rs 3000/= per annum to licensed fishermen but that’s not the viable solution to the issue,” Dar told Rising Kashmir.
AD fisheries Ghulam Jeelani however reiterated that the department and government has several schemes for the fishermen community.
“Under PMMSY scheme, the fishermen community do avail Rs 3000 as nutritional livelihood scheme while as the government is also providing low cost house scheme of 1 lac 30 thousand for construction of houses. Besides this, the government also provides funds for construction of trout and carp farms to the fishermen community,” he added.
Reacting to the adverse impact of garbage and illegal extraction of sand from rivers on fish breeding, AD Fisheries said that every pollution affects the aquatic flora, fauna while the department is making every possible effort to stop such practices.
“During the months of May and June, we stop any extraction of sand from river sides as it is the peak time for fish breeding,” Jeelani added.
The fishermen of Sopore claim that if the use of chemicals, fertilizers, dumping of garbage and illegal extraction of sand is not stopped, the time is not far away when the famous fish of Sopore will face extinction.
