ISLAMABAD: After the Capital Development Authority (CDA) decided to reclaim the zoo from it, the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) on Saturday said it was looking at legal options to retain the Islamabad zoo.

Last week, IWMB welcomed the media for an exclusive tour to shed light on the work done and share plans of the board since taking charge of the facility three years ago. The media tour was in the wake of plans by the Capital Development Authority to get back control of the zoo. The civic body maintained that it aimed to reopen the zoo after taking over its administrative control from the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board and extend educational and recreational opportunities to families, students and nature enthusiasts.

IWMB was set up in 2015, under Section 4 of the Islamabad Wildlife Ordinance 1979, and it reported to the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination. The now-closed Islamabad zoo was handed over to IWMB in July 2020, by the cabinet following the Islamabad High Court orders.

In the written response by IWMB Chairperson Rina Saeed Khan, the IWMB said that in 2020, Islamabad Zoo was shut down by the landmark judgement of the IHC, which was not challenged by anyone. The site was converted into the only wildlife rescue centre of its kind in Pakistan, providing assistance to all species of wild animals in distress, she said.

Chairperson says CDA is misinformed that facility is not being used; terms recent decision against IHC order

Written to the Capital Development Authority chief, Rina Saeed Khan said that since its inception in 2021, the centre has successfully rescued and rehabilitated approximately 381 animals.

IWMB only dealt with wild animals that were treated in an inhumane way, orphaned and injured in order to implement the IHC order. The verdict specifically stated, “No animal is treated in a manner that subjects it to unnecessary pain and suffering”.

IWMB Board had also approved detailed plans, in consultation with international experts of ‘Join Hands’ (international NGO specialising in welfare of wild animals), to open a ‘Visitor Information Centre’ as part of the Margalla Wildlife Centre with digital displays for the public, IWMB said in the letter.

“On January 29, 2024, without consulting or informing IWMB, the CDA board decided to “reclaim” the Islamabad zoo and re-open it as a zoo “of international standards” during their meeting,” said Rina Saeed Khan.

She said that the CDA board was misinformed that IWMB had failed to make use of the facility. The CDA board had now approved the proposal and asked officials concerned to approach the federal government with their request to take back administrative control of the now-closed zoo. According to Rina Saeed Khan, “This is clearly against the IHC order.”

Prior to the CDA decision, CDA officials under the Environment Directorate wing attempted to enter the closed zoo on the pretext of tree cutting inside the zoo by IWMB when only old and dead wood was being cleared and this was communicated to both the CDA chief and to Deputy DG Environment Irfan Niazi.

“Currently, the CDA staff under the Environment directorate has resorted to bullying IWMB park rangers on Trail 5, threatening to cut electricity to IWMB’s Visitor Information Centre and denying entry from the main gate to IWMB vehicles,” she said in the response.

The IWMB said that the area covered by the zoo was actually included in the official notification of Margalla Hills National Park issued in 1980, which mentioned clearly that land in Saidpur village was included in the ‘national park’ as per revenue records. The zoo area was part of Saidpur village, which was currently in the process of verification under the boundary demarcation of the National Park. At this stage saying that the zoo land was the mandate of CDA would be presumptuous and questionable.

Published in Dawn, February 4th, 2024