But the keenly awaited decision has been deferred many times as the views of the board members are divided and the governments of Balochistan and Sindh have also expressed reservations on the issue. The NFDB headed by the advisor to the chief executive on food, agriculture and fisheries, Shafi Niaz, held a series of meetings with the representatives of fishermen and deep-sea operators to settle the issue. But these meetings could not produce any results. Meanwhile a group of deep-sea operators moved the Sindh High Court which allowed nine trawlers of Taiwan to operate despite the ban. During a briefing at the Karachi Fish Harbour the NDFB chief admitted that it was difficult to take a decision about deep-sea fishing because of the reservations on both sides.
Fishermen favour the ban on deep-sea fishing which they term detrimental to the national interests.
They claim that the deep-sea fishing sector has played a positive role in the economy of the country and is the highest taxpayer in the fisheries sector.