Caretaker Sindh Chief Minister Justice (R) Maqbool Baqar has directed the Wildlife Dept that the community lands that are treasures of wildlifemust be protected and the department should make conservation arrangements with the community for dry zone game bird hunting areas, wetlands, areas of high-water quality or scenic value, areas that contain soils generally not listed for cultivation. He said that the conservation arrangement should be aimed at promoting eco-tourism, scientific and controlled game management including native biodiversity; eco-tourism; and trophy hunting.This he said while presiding over a meeting of Forest & Wildlife here at CM House.
The meeting was attended by Secretary Forest & Wildlife Najam Shah, Secretary Finance Kazim Jatoi, Additional Secretary Qazi Abdul Jabbar, Adl Secretary Tech Khalid Mahmood, Conservator Wildlife Javed Maher and other concerned officers.The CM was told that every year CITES Management Authority, the Ministry of Climate Change, Federal government allocate trophy hunting quotas for the Community Based Trophy Hunting Program in respective Provinces.
The quota for trophy hunting season 2023-24 was approved in the meeting of the CITES Management Authority of Pakistan held in July 2023. The minimum reserved price has also been rescheduled, accordingly, exportable Urial and Sindh Ibex are to be sold to foreigners at $ 20, 000, and Sindh Ibex at $6000 respectively, whereas five trophies of Ibex for Pakistani Hunters at Rs 400,000/-.The CM was told that the data revealed that there were 66 male Ibex out of 1838 with exploitable horn sizes of 35 inches and above and 49 Urial out of 1104 with exploitable horn size of 22 inches and above available for trophy hunting.To a question the CM was told that in trophy hunting animals sought as trophies have large weapons such as horns, antlers, or tusks. Consequently, trophies so counted were invariably old-age males, and the animals most frequently considered as trophy species were the ungulates.
Trophy hunting is recognized as a management tool wherein an annual survey of target species is carried out and mature and old age males are counted leaving the majority for the natural food chain, only a few are offered for trophy hunting as per the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) quota regulated by CITES Management Authority, the federal govt, in the loop with Geneva Secretariat as per quota advertisement, is published in newspapers and highest international or national bidders open bid is accepted, Chief Conservator Javed Maher briefed the CM.
To a question, the CM was told that Trophy hunting was not carried out in protected areas (National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries) but only at Game Reserves, private lands and state lands.Secretary Forrest & Wildlife Najam Shah told the CM that Trophy hunting was not an attempt to generate revenue but to manage, conserve and protect Wildlife and their habitats by involving communities.
He added that the approved ratio of benefit sharing is 80:20 between communities and government as approved by Pakistan’s CITES Management Authority.Najam Shah said that according to this concept, the local community living on the premises of any target species is taken on board for Protection from illegal hunting, for the conservation of habitat, for management in the shape of surveys habitat monitoring, water spreading and water harvesting and formation of CBOsThe CM was told that October to March represented non-breeding season for game birds, making it a technically suitable time for the legal, ethical, responsible and sustainable harvest of game birds.
The CM directed the wildlife dept that the Tharparkar district, Shaheed Benazirabad division where hunting season was observed last year, 2022-23 should remain closed for the hunting season 2023-24. “I mean where hunting would be allowed this year those areas would remain closed next year for bearding purposes,” he said.To a question, the CM was told that in 2019 the population of Indus Dophin was recorded at 1419. Javed Maher told the CM that from 1995 to 2020, 200 Dolphins were rescued.
He directed the dept to take more measures to protect the Indus Dolphin.The CM also directed the department to take appropriate measures to protect migratory birds. “These birds are considered our guests, and we must protect them,” he concluded.
