These fisher women have not only worked towards ending the destructive fishing methods, they are now getting involved in other activities to change the society.
Life of Tharus without water is unthinkable. They are synonymous to each other.
Chain Kumari Chaudhary of Badki Sisniya of ward no. 7 in Rapti Rural Municipality of Dang is one of those women in the village who relies heavily on fishing to sustain her and her family.
Fishing is Chain Kumari’s main source of income. She does fishing in nearby rivers and rivulets and takes care of her family with the income.
“We keep small fishes to ourselves and sell the big ones,” says Chain Kumari.
Tharu community has been fishing since time immemorial. They have adopted a sustainable fishing method. Therefore, fishing has remained the mainstay for every generation. Chain Kumari too adopts the same old method.
Along with some of her fellow village women, Chain Kumari is at the local rivulet for fishing and Paani video team followed the process.
Clad in traditional sarees and blouse, the Tharu women lined up in the water to catch in small hand-made nets.
As they got nothing for a while, Chain Kumari quipped, “Nothing…we don’t get anything in the beginning, it takes some time.”
These women generally go for fishing in a group. It’s not only fun outing for them, it also is an opportunity for them to catch up what’s happening in the village.
This traditional fishing practice has made these self-reliant. As they make some income from fishing, they do not need to depend on their husbands’ income for small expenses. This has also enhanced their self esteem.
“With the income, it has been easier to buy daily groceries and pay for children’s education too,” Chain Kumari shares, “I don’t need to ask for money with my husband. It has helped me support the family.”
People come to buy fish at home, and they even send fish to the market, even to Ghorahi, a big town close by.
Sunita Chaudhary, another fisher woman, says they divide their time between fishing and household chores. “We do our household chores after we go back home,” she says. “If we do not finish our work today, we do it tomorrow.”
Though life had been much easier due to income from fishing, women here are worried too. Due to the destructive methods of fishing by men in the village, the number of fish declined sharply in the past few years.
The men here used explosives, electric current and poison to catch fish. This even killed juvenile fish and destroyed eggs. Thus, the number of fish declined. This reduced the income for these women too.
People used poison, set electric current and even used explosives to catch fish, according to Chain Kumari. “This has decreased the number of fish.”
She feels that using hooks and nets is more sustainable.
As the situation worsened, women got together and concluded that fishing with poison, electro-fishing and blasting have brought this crisis. Then, they decided to stop these destructive methods of fishing.
“Using electric current destroys fish, they don’t give eggs, even if they do, they don’t grow properly,” concludes Chain Kumari.
Women here formed a group against these wrong practices, as they couldn’t convince men in the village without a group.
“We formed a group to stop men from resorting to electro-fishing and blasting,” she says. “We told them not to use poison also.”
Nowadays, these women campaign in a group. They encourage village men to use the traditional methods of fishing. This has drastically brought down the wrong practices of fishing.
Parasuram Chaudhary accepted that local people used to catch fish in Rapti by blasting explosives, setting electric current or using poison. But, he says, “This has now decreased. People have begun to understand the importance of traditional methods and end wrong practices.”
Another local Shiva Kumar Chaudhary says that men no more set electric current to catch fish like before. “Women told us not to adopt wrong practices, they convinced us,” he says. “Now, we don’t use destructive methods.”
These destructive methods not only affected the fish population, but had severe impact on the locals too. Many got injured while setting current and using explosives. Some even lost their lives, living behind their family members to suffer.
Kamala Chaudhary, a fisher woman, told us that some people even consumed fish killed with poison and even the cattle died.
But she says that things have changed now. “Some consumed poisonous fish before, and some didn’t. There have been many instances of people getting injured,” she says. “The wrong practices have decreased drastically now.”
There are many traditional practices in which this Tharu community has to rely on water. Many of their rituals are directly related to fish.
“We need fish during our wedding rituals. We need fish during our wedding procession…as auspicious gift,” says Munna Chaudhary.
These fisher women’s concerted efforts have proved beneficial to preserve the tradition. The practices they have established have created a basis for new generation to follow suit.
For example, Sanju Chaudhary, Chain Kumari’s daughter, who accompanies her mother to fishing sometimes, says, “We need to save fish to show them to the new generation.”
With abundant fish available in local rivers and rivulets, women here now have better access to the market, providing them better opportunities of income generation. Besides selling fresh fish, they also dry them and sell. A kilogram of dried fish gives them Rs. 1,500 while fresh fish sells for Rs. 400 per kilogram.
They have now begun to think about other income generation activities like vegetable farming.
“Instead of going out in search of work, we can grow vegetables in our garden, sell them and make some profit,” says Chain Kumari. “We can educate our children. We can buy food that we like, buy clothes, and even buy some cosmetics that women always need.”
Women in Badki Sisniya are now in the process of legally registering their group. These fisher women have not only worked towards ending the destructive fishing methods, they are now getting involved in other activities to change the society. This has ultimately helped in their empowerment.
(Based on Paani television and Paani radio programs)
