Fisherman dies after his boat capsizes in Wular Lake

Bandipora, Apr 9:  A middle-aged fisherman died after his boat capsized in Wular Lake in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district on Tuesday.

He has been identified as Mushtaq Ahmad Kawa, 45, from Kanibathi village located along the Wular Lake peripheries.

According to locals, Kawa had left for the lake at 6 am to catch fish and after spending some time in the lake his boat capsized, drowning him.

With efforts from locals and police, his body was retrieved after over an hour and brought to District Hospital Bandipora for medico-legal formalities.

Meanwhile, locals alleged that the drowning incident was due to illegal obstructions in the lake wherein designated portions are locked out with fence posts.

“His boat got stuck and overturned,” said Firdous Ahmad, a local who was also in the lake at some distance at the time of Kawa’s drowning.

A group of locals said repeated requests to the concerned authorities to remove illegal obstructions inside the lake over the years have proven futile.

As Kawa’s body was retrieved, a pall of gloom descended on Kanibathi.

Kawa leaves behind a wife, two daughters, and a son with cognitive disability.

His other son had died some years ago after coming under a vehicle, the villagers said.

With a sole bread earner snatched, the family and relatives are making pleas to the authorities to provide appropriate compensation to the family.