Villagers catch poachers in Thar

Villagers from the Ranglio area of Tharparkar staged a protest against illegal hunting in Mithi city on Tuesday after catching three hunters who had killed seven deers.

Protesting at Kashmir Chowk in Mithi, the protestors took the Sindh Wildlife Department (SWD) to task over its inaction despite several complaints registered earlier against the practice.

“No one listens to our concerns,” one of the villagers said.

“We could protect our wildlife better than the government [SWD],” added another, alleging that the administration was in on it as well. An SWD official reportedly reached the scene, as the villagers expressed their grievances.

“An FIR should be registered and SWD officials should be suspended,” demanded the protestors as they claimed that the hunters had also opened fire on the villagers when they tried to stop them.

One of the hunters, identified as Abdul Ghani, was tied up by the protestors. Speaking to the media, he admitted that he and four others had been hunting deer when they were caught by the villagers. He also stated that two of his accomplices had managed to escape. While speaking to The Express Tribune, SWD provincial head Javed Ahmed Mahar said that an inquiry had been initiated and legal action was being taken against the illegal hunters.

“No one is allowed to hunt deer anywhere in Sindh. Our law does not permit that,” he said. On the complaint of the local villagers, police registered a case against the hunters. Taking notice of the incident, SWD suspended its three officials, including Deputy Conservator Mirpurkhas Riaz Ahmed Rind, game officers Abdul Ghafoor Sarhandi and Basiro Khaskheli. Mir Aijaz Ahmed Talupr, the divisional conservator of Larkano, has been assigned additional charge and has also been directed to conduct the inquiry of the incident. “It is really a sad incident,” Mahar said.

Sources in SWD told The Express Tribune that the total number of staff of the department in Tharparkar was less 10. “It is not easy to cover this whole region with limited employees,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 6^th, 2022.