CDA to control wild boar population in capital

ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) is planning to launch a campaign to control the increasing population of wild boars in the capital.

Talking to the Express Tribune, CDA Spokesperson Ramzan Sajid said that the increase in the population of wild boars was alarming, and the authority was planning to control the population near residential areas of the capital with the help of “poison baiting.”

Sajid said wild boars come to the city in search of food and are found near garbage dumps or in empty plots where people dispose off their leftover food. He said the authority empties out garbage bins in the city thrice a day and requested residents to avoid trashing garbage in empty plots across the city. He also advised residents to keep their pets within premises as a precautionary measure.

Shadmeena Khan, a park manager at Himalayan Wild Life Foundation, said wild boars are indigenous to Islamabad and have ecological importance. When the capital was not fully developed, they were often found wandering on roads.

She said that the population of wild boars has increased in the capital because there are no predators to hunt them. Wild boars are normally hunted by leopards, which are rare in Islamabad.

Deputy Director WWF Dr Ijaz Ahmed said that it is difficult to estimate the total population of wild boars in the capital; however, it is estimated that by each passing day, their population is increasing. The female boar gives birth to seven baby boars at a time on average. He stressed that a four year long campaign was needed to control their increasing population.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 18^th, 2010.