For about two weeks the second highly poisonous puffer fish of the world continued to land at Karachi Fish Harbour (KFH) without the concerned authorities' notice, as the prohibited specie have also been found at retail shops, rising fears of loss of human lives, officials said on Monday.
According to Marine Fisheries Department (MFD), this fish or any of Tetraodontidae, Molidae, Diodontidae, and Canthigas-teridae families are forbidden for export and domestic consumption under Pakistan Fish Inspection and Quality Control Rules, 1998. The department points out the toxin of puffer fish cannot be destroyed by cooking or freezing, which signifies the intensity of the venom the fish contains in its internal organs, like liver, gonads, ovaries, intestines, and skin.
It says venom of one puffer fish is sufficient to kill 30 adults and there is no known antidote to offset the effects of this poison to save humans. The MFD showed concerns over the selling of banned fish at Karachi fish harbour. The initial symptoms of poison struck human could be tingling of lips and mouth, followed by dizziness, tingling in the extremities, problems with speaking, and balance, muscles weaknesses, vomiting, diarrhea, blood pressure, numbness, prickling over the body, rapid heart rate and muscles paralysis.
In a letter to the Fishermen Co-operative Society (FSC) - an organisation which is responsible for the selling and purchasing of seafood including fish, shrimp, crabs, lobsters etc, at the auction halls of Karachi fish harbour, the MFD expressed grave concerns over the landing of venomous fish.
According to the letter, puffer fish is being sold at Karachi fish harbour 'freely' for the last one and two weeks and it is also found at retail shops in the metropolis. The letter was sent to FCS on February 23. It says the fish is the second most poisonous vertebrate in the world following golden poison frog. It says six species of the same Tetraodontidae family are found in Pakistan's marine waters. According to the MFD classification, Legocephalus spadicius (locally known as KAGOO) is the most common specie in the catch.
The fish is identified with yellow green color having half body rough to spiky skin with large four teeth. The department says puffer's poison is commonly called as tetrodotoxin. It says Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is a poison produced by organisms belonging to the Tetradontidae order which includes the puffer fish, ocean sunfish and porcupine fish.
As per clause 5 of the rules, fish species belong to families of Tetraodontidae, Molidae, Diodontidae, and Canthigast-eridae are banned, besides fish and fisheries products containing biotoxins such ciguatera toxin, paralytic shellfish poison, diarrahetic shellfish poison etc.
The rules also restrict landing of aquatic turtles, tortoises, snakes, mammals including dugongs, dolphins, porpoises, whales etc. The MFD issued orders to FCS to comply with the rules and immediately disallow selling of the puffer fish at its auction halls. It asked the society to undertake appropriate and affective corrective measures to stop all the activities of the banned fish trade/ distribution for human consumption.
It also asked the society to disallow the sales and purchase of the forbidden fish species including Tetraodontidae, Molidae, Diodontidae, and Canthigasteridae families at harbour markets, besides informing all the departments to take preventive measures and actions to eliminate the looming risk.
Karachi Fish Harbour Authority (KFHA) has also requested to the FCS administration to disallow landing of the banned fish at the harbour. It asked the society to confiscate boats and impose heavy penalties on those fishermen violating the rules. The authority also asked the FCS to take action against those staffers allowing the sales of puffer fish in the future.
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