CHITRAL: The wildlife department has banned hunting of waterfowl along the riverbank bordering the Chitral Airport on the request of the Civil Aviation Authority as the hunting activity was jeopardising the landing of aircraft flying at low altitude.

A notification issued by the chief conservator of wildlife department banned the hunting activity for the season 2025-26 along the Balach riverbank, which flanks the airport on its two sides, which lies in the buffer zone of Chitral Gol National Park (CGNP).

The vast riverbank of Balach stretching over a large area is considered to be one of the largest hunting grounds of migratory birds where dozens of artificial ponds are raised by the hunters to lure the migratory birds while flying to the plains of the country from Siberia with the advent of winter season.

Divisional forest officer of CGNP, wildlife division Chitral, Rizwanullah told Dawn that the order will be implemented in letter and spirit for which special deployment of field staff will be made while raising of ponds will be discouraged for the season.

He said that earlier, the district administration had imposed a ban on the hunting of ducks for three months under section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code throughout the district.

The hunters have, on the other hand, opposed both the moves of banning hunting in the vicinity of the airport for the season and imposing Section 144, and termed them unwarranted and without any cogent reason.

Riaz Ahmed Diwan, a leader of hunters’ association, told Dawn that hunting of waterfowl had been the part and parcel of the culture and tradition of Chitral since the time immemorial. He said that both the impugned orders would be challenged before Peshawar High Court as the duck shooting was carried out only during the three months of winter season, which did not pose any threat to the conservation of the migratory birds coming from Siberia.

He said that if Chitral was not the breeding ground of ducks, then how its hunting in a limited way could threaten their population while the flights of PIA had also been suspended for the last four years making the banning of hunting near Chitral airport a futile practice.

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2025