Rawal lake: Police avoid filing illegal fishing cases: official

ISLAMABAD: Police are not cooperating with the fisheries department in implementing a ban on illegal fishing in Rawal Lake, top official of the Fisheries Department of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) said.

“Police don’t register cases against people involved in illegal fishing,” Fisheries Deputy Director Sadiq Buzdar said on Monday.

Some people even misbehave with the fisheries staff when stopped from fishing, he said.

He said that if illegal fishing was stopped, the department could earn up to Rs100 million per year in licence fees. “The department had earned over Rs 900,000 in licence fees since May,” Buzdar said.

He said that department has impounded four diesel engines mounted on boats during action against illegal fishing at Rawal Lake during the last five months.

Fisheries has also confiscated 50 fishing rods, over 2,000 spools and 250 hooks and reels.

In addition to these, Buzdar said, the department seized three tubes, ten big and five small fishing nets, a wooden and two inflated boats used in illegal fishing.

To a question, he said that population has swelled around the lake and influential people living there have their own boats. He said there are over 150 boats in the lake, many of them were being used for illegal fishing at night. He demanded the removal of boats from Rawal Lake.

Talking to APP anglers at the Rawal lake complained that the department confiscates and burns their angling material though they are willing to pay want to pay fee. They said that the ticket office of department was at a long distance and it was difficult to go there, especially on working days.

They demanded that a ticket booth should be set up at the site of fishing or the Fisheries department staff should be given tickets, which they should issue to the anglers on the spot.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 1^st, 2016.