KARACHI: The federal government had issued at least 13 permits to foreigners to hunt the migratory houbara bustard in the province during hunting season 2016/17, said Sindh Parliamentary Affairs Minister Nisar Khuhro on Tuesday.

He was responding to legislators’ queries during Question Hour that pertained to the wildlife department in Sindh Assembly’s session that was chaired by Deputy Speaker Shehla Raza. Neither Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, who holds the portfolio of the wildlife department, nor any senior official of the department was present in the assembly to answer queries.

Mr Khuhro, who responded in the absence of the chief minister, could not give specific as well as convincing answers to all legislators’ queries, though a junior officer of the department present in the officers’ gallery continued to pass on the required information through assembly staffers to him during the session.

Responding to a question by Pakistan Muslim League-Functional legislator Nusrat Abbasi, the minister said that earlier the Sindh High Court in a constitutional petition (D 5806) of 2014 challenging a notification — No. DCP(P&I) June 18, 2014/15 (Allocation/UAE) — issued by the foreign affairs ministry allocating various areas to the foreign dignitaries for hunting of houbara bustards during 2014/15 had imposed a ban on hunting.

He said that later the Supreme Court in its Jan 22, 2016 judgment set aside the earlier judgment of Aug 19, 2015 on various constitutional petitions regarding the houbara bustard hunting issue. Currently there was no ban on houbara hunting, he said adding that, however, no such houbara hunting permit had been issued by the Sindh government for season 2016-17.

He said that the areas allocated by the federal government to foreigners, including Qatari nationals for houbara hunting in Sindh, included Jamshoro, Thatta, Jati, Malir, Dadu, Umerkot, Badin, Jungshahi, Matiari, Sukkur, Khairpur, etc.

Replying to another of her questions as to why the houbara bustards were hunted, the minister said that one reason was that hunting was a sport and other was that probably the hunters considered that its meat had some proteins and nutritious value.

Replying to another of her questions, he said that other Siberian birds that came here during the winters could be hunted after getting a hunting permit (fee Rs2,000) from the wildlife department during the three-month-long hunting season.

Replying to a question as to why the number of migratory birds coming here was declining year by year, the minister said that it depended on climate change; if there was less harsh winter in their Siberian habitat less number of birds would migrate to come here.

Marine turtles

Responding to a question by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz legislator Shafi Jamote regarding installation of turtle excluding devices (TEDs) in the fishing nets so that turtles did not get caught in the nets, the minister said that installation and monitoring of the TED in the fishing nets used by the fishing boats was not the Sindh wildlife department’s responsibility; it was the responsibility of the marine fisheries department.

Answering a question raised by Muttahida Qaumi Movement legislator Waqar Shah regarding steps taken to protect marine turtles, the minister said that over 2.4 million turtle eggs had been recovered and brought to the department’s hatcheries at Sandspit and Hawkesbay beaches, and over 700,000 hatchlings had been released into the sea.

He said over 8,200 mother turtles, which had come to lay eggs, had been tagged and out of these over 650 had returned to lay eggs at these beaches again. At least 12 turtles had, with assistance from the international wildlife research and conservation agencies, been tagged with satellite tracking devices so that their migratory routes could be monitored.

Responding to a question asked by the legislator regarding sale of turtle eggs at Empress Market in Saddar, the minister said that turtle eggs were not eaten/consumed in Pakistan.

The minister also did not respond to a question asked by MQM legislator Dewan Chawla regarding the names and number of species whose eggs were consumed in the country.

Responding to a question asked by Pakistan Peoples Party legislator Khair­unnisa Mughal regarding the number of hog deer in the province, the minister said that the hog deer was a shy animal and preferred to live in riverine forest spread over thousands of kilometres along the banks of the Indus covered with tall grass and thick vegetation, so it was very difficult to carry out its census.

But according to rough estimates given by natives residing in the habitat, its number could be around 5,000. He said it was a protected animal and its poaching had not been reported and nobody had been caught.

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2017