PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has included “attack by wild carnivores” in the provincial compensation policy under which the family of a victim of such attacks will receive Rs300,000 for loss of life and Rs100,000 for grievous injuries.

According to a notification of Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement Department, the provincial cabinet has approved that attack by the wild carnivores might be included in the compensation policy at the rate of Rs300,000 for loss of life and Rs100,000 for grievous injuries.

The provincial assembly recently passed an amended Act that aimed at payment of compensation to the legal heirs of a person killed or wounded by wild animals.

Govt approves proposal of wildlife department

An official said that wildlife department had proposed to the government to included attack by carnivores in the compensation policy.

Iftikharuz Zaman, the district forest officer of wildlife department in Abbottabad, said that the proposal had been sent to the government because of sharp increase in attacks by common leopards, wild boars and other wild species in forest-covered areas of the district.

He said that data compiled by the department showed that common leopards and wild boars had killed 12 people including women and children and wounded 22 others in Galiyat area of Abbottabad since 2005. He said that a wild species attacked a woman in Galiyat about eight months ago and she could not survive.

He said that wild carnivores had killed hundreds of livestock in the area during the last four years. “There are multiple reasons for increase in attacks of wild carnivores in the area,” said Mr Zaman.

He said that major reason of increase in the attacks was that population had increased in Galiyat and people had encroached upon the wild animals’ habitats. He said that wild carnivores had lost their natural habitats and corridors due to rapid growth in population so the animals were attacking people.

On the other side, the conservator said that death of 85 common leopards had been reported from different areas of Abbottabad district since 1984. He said that local people had killed leopards in self-defence or to protect their cattle. He said that majority of the families had already received compensation.

The official claimed population of common leopard was increased in Hazara region because of conservation measures. Besides wildlife department, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has also carried out conservation projects in the area to protect the species and increase its population.

The encounters between humans and wild carnivores occur not only in Hazara region, but also take place in other parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Villagers have killed three common leopards in Orakzai tribal District and sub-division Kohat on the pretext of killing their cattle.

The wildlife department imposed fine of Rs130,000 on a resident of Orakzai for reportedly killing a leopard in August last. Killing of another common leopard was reported from Orakzai in June last.

Published in Dawn, September 20th, 2019