PESHAWAR, March 9: A two-day workshop on Inter-Provincial Coordination in Wildlife Conservation, which concluded here on Saturday, suggested to bring uniformity in rules and regulations dealing with wild animals.

The participants also called for better coordination among the four provinces and other stake-holders to cope with the increasing smuggling of wild animals, declaring some other species as protected animals and banning bear-baiting in the country.

The workshop, jointly organised by the NWFP Wildlife Department and the World Society for the Protection of Animals, was attended by officials of the wildlife departments from the four provinces, Northern Areas, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Federal Ministry of Environment and representatives of World Wildlife Foundation.

The WSPA representative expressed serious concern over the bear-baiting cases in Pakistan, particularly in Punjab, and the smuggling of black and brown bear-cub from the NWFP and Balochistan to down country.

He said the depletion of habitats was posing serious threat to both species of bears while the Balochistan black bear was on the verge of extinction. He proposed that the wildlife departments should take proper steps for the conservation and protection of bears in the country.

The workshop proposed that bear cubs under five years of age should be confiscated wherever they were found and give reward to the concerned staff. The WSPA offered a reward of Rs5,000 per bear cub confiscation to the concerned district wildlife office. The society would also pay for the shifting expenditures on bear cubs from the place of confiscation to its sanctuary in Kund Park, Khairabad, and would organise training for the conservation staff. At present the WSPA is raring four bears at Kund sanctuary.

It was pointed out that the country was loosing huge revenue due to smuggling of Chiragh and Perigrine falcons from Pakistan to Middle East.

A conservator disclosed that falcon smugglers frequently crossed into Xinjiang province of China to capture the bird. He said the border security forces of the neighbouring country arrested a large number of smugglers and the Chinese government registered protest with Islamabad.

To discourage illegal trade of falcons in the country, it was proposed that the four provinces should bring uniformity in trapping, dealing and exit permit fees of falcons. In this connection, it was suggested to fix Rs25,000 trapping fee, Rs98,000 dealing fee and Rs20,000 exit permit fee.

The participants agreed to establish special checkpoints on all international airports and seaports and depute wildlife staff to check the smuggling of wild species. Similarly, the provincial wildlife departments should establish entry checking points among the provinces to monitor illegal transportation of wild animals and birds.