April 19, 2008	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 12, 1429

KARACHI, April 18: The Sindh Wildlife Department is finalising a list of 21 honorary district game wardens who will be sacked in the next few days, it has been reliably learnt.

Some highly placed sources said all of these wardens had been appointed by the previous regime on political grounds. With the new government in office, they were being fired to make room for some fresh appointments.

Sindh Wildlife Secretary Mahboob Alam Ansari told Dawn that the list of honorary wardens to be sacked soon contained the following names: Mohammad Hanif Khan Marwat, Karachi; Syed Riaz Hussain Shah Sherazi, Thatta; Syed Ghulam Hussain Shah, Badin; Syed Ghulam Nabi Shah, Nawabshah; Ali Hassan Kamario, Shikarpur; Malik Changez Khan, Jamshoro; Syed Zahid Hussain Shah Rizvi, Sukkur; Fakir Pir Bux Gaho, Khairpur; and Rais Shahnawaz Khan Khushik, Naushehro Feroz.

All these nine wardens were appointed on August 21, 2003. Rais Ali Ghulam Nizamani (Sanghar, appointed on December 31, 2003), Arbab Abdul Sattar (Tharparkar, Feb 7, 2004), Syed Mohammad Ali Shah Jamote (Hyderabad, May 4, 2004), Mir Sikander Ali Banglani (Jacobabad, April 9, 2005), Ali Nawaz Marri (Mirpurkhas, May 12, 2005), Mir Ghulam Mustafa Talpur (Umerkot, July 19, 2005), Mir Ghulam Majeed Khan Sunderani (Kashmore, March 17, 2006), Syed Farman Ali Shah (Matiari, June 20, 2006), Noor Nabi Khan Chandio (Dadu, June 2, 2007), Shafi Mohammad Mashori (Larkana, August 29, 2007), Burhan Khan Chandio (Kambar, November 2, 2007) and Ghulam Nabi Dal (Tando Allahyar).

Sources said that the provision of honorary district game wardens, who were supposed to be selected for their conservationist approach, was made in the wildlife laws to ensure protection of wildlife against poaching incidents. They said influential locals were usually made wardens so that they supplemented the wildlife staffers, who alone might not be able to carry out their duties effectively. Besides, they (wardens) were also expected to pool in their resources in patrolling to check the poachers.

However, the sources said, wardens started draining the departmental resources over the years rather than pooling in their resources to strengthen the wildlife protection that made these appointments attractive for many.

The sources said any ruling party that failed to accommodate its supporters in any other lucrative slot now appointed them as wardens. Soon after their appointment as wardens, they started demanding vehicles for patrolling and funds for setting up of offices and its utilities, the sources added.

Least interested in implementing wildlife laws and ensuring conservation, some wardens used their position to extend favour to influential bureaucrats and people in uniform by facilitating their hunting trips, they said.

Some time back the former RPO Sukkur, Mohammad Bachal Sangri, during patrolling in a game reserve reportedly wanted to shoot wildlife, but he did not have the required permission. He allegedly asked honorary warden Fakir Pir Bux Gaho (whose name is included in the list of people facing dismissal), who was accompanying him, for permission. Knowing fully well that he could not grant such permission, Mr Gaho reportedly allowed the area police chief just to please him (the RPO) particularly with the general elections around. Despite the fact that the issue was raised in the media the department did not take any action against the policeman or the warden.

Responding to Dawn queries, Sindh Wildlife Conservator Ghulam Rasool Channa said the list had been prepared and sent to the department high-ups for further process.

When asked, Sindh Wildlife Secretary Mahboob Alam Ansari confirmed that he had received the list from the conservator and the proposal for sacking of the wardens was being prepared. It would be sent to the minister in a couple of days to get the approval and hopefully the process would be completed within a week, he added.