Fishermen block Karachi Port channel over Balochistan fishing ban

KARACHI: Protesting fishermen blocked the shipping channel of Karachi Port over ban on fishing in Balochistan’s waters, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

According to the port sources, the protesting fishermen of Sindh have anchored their boats to close the channel effectively halting movement of the cargo ships.

“Karachi Port has completely paralyzed due to closure of the shipping channel,” sources at the Karachi Port Trust (KPT) said.

Scores of cargo ships have been anchored outside the port waiting for their entry to get the port berth.

Special Assistant to the PM on Maritime Affairs Mahmood Moulvi called an emergency meeting at the KPT head office over the situation.

“I am holding meeting with the stakeholders for reopening the port’s shipping channel,” PM’s aide said.

“The Pakistan Maritime Security Agency have also been contacted over the situation,” KPT sources said.

The suspension of the port’s activity could negatively affect the country’s commercial activities, sources apprehended.

The fishermen on August 07 last year also protested and parked their boats at the channel reserved for cargo ships. The protest started after the fishermen were stopped from going into the open sea for fishing.

Due to protest, the anchoring of the cargo ships was suspended at the port. The fishermen said that they were unable to do fishing for the last two months and they were facing problems in feeding their families.

The Karachi Port Trust (KPT) falls under the administrative control of the Federal Maritime ministry that oversees the operations of the port, one of South Asia’s largest and busiest deep-water seaports which handle about 60% of the nation’s cargo.