In the land of peace, ducks have no chance to survive

DROSH, Feb 21: It seems in the land of peace, ducks have no right to life. A resident of upper Chitral last year went all the way to Lahore and came back with a variety of decoys which he bought for Rs10,000 to hunt ducks in his village. The Siberian ducks migrate to the plains of Pakistan in the winter and then go back to their habitat in the spring every year. Chitral comes under one of their main routes to and from the plain areas of Pakistan as far as Karachi. But when these birds enter the territory of Chitral, they find their hosts armed with guns ready to exterminate them. If we say that February and March are the months for the mass killing of these ducks it will not be out of the context. Long before the approach of the hunting season in these two moths, the people of Chitral, especially in villages where the river spreads out, start constructing temporary ponds and lakes for the landing of the ducks to be shoot by spending thousands of rupees. Though lakes along the river are considered as the resting points for these birds, in Chitral people have turned these water reservoirs into the slaughter houses of the seasonal ducks. Though hunting ducks is not illegal or prohibited if you follow the set rules but the way the peaceful people of Chitral go after the ducks is certainly cruel. We feel pride in killing these ducks and try to show our valour and achievement by displaying their beaks in our houses. It also seems that there is no law in Chitral to regulate the hunting of ducks. Experts say that by killing the ducks in their breeding seasons which is February and March we are also contributing in their extermination. They said that the Lahore High Court has issued stay on the hunting of Siberian migratory ducks and a law can also be made in Chitral based on this ruling. The residents of Chitral have called upon the government to take steps to check the rampant hunting of the Siberian ducks in order to protect the wildlife.]]>