Pakistan’s lake manchar crisis: ancient water community faces extinction as ecosystem collapses

For countless generations, the Mohana people have called the waters of Lake Manchar home, earning them the nickname “bird people” for their seamless adaptation to life on Pakistan’s largest freshwater lake. In Sindh province, this indigenous community built their entire existence around the 250-square-kilometer aquatic ecosystem, navigating its waters in slender boats and living in harmony with the lake’s natural rhythms.

Today, Bashir Ahmed poles his fragile craft through increasingly shallow waters, his bamboo oar scraping against mud where deep channels once flowed. His boat represents more than transportation—it embodies the cultural heritage of a people whose way of life is rapidly disappearing. The lake that once served as a thriving oasis, supporting both the Mohana community and diverse wildlife, now faces a devastating ecological collapse.

The crisis stems from a deadly combination of industrial pollution and prolonged drought conditions that have transformed this vital freshwater system into a shadow of its former self. As water levels drop and contamination spreads, the Mohana find themselves struggling not just to maintain their traditional livelihoods, but to survive at all. Their simple huts, built along the lake’s drainage channels, stand as silent witnesses to an environmental catastrophe that threatens to erase both a unique ecosystem and an ancient culture.

The plight of Lake Manchar represents a broader environmental crisis facing Pakistan, where climate change and industrial development increasingly threaten traditional communities and natural habitats across the country.