Peshawar, Dec 30, 2025: A dispute has emerged between the federal government and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Wildlife Department over trophy hunting permits for markhor, ibex, and grey goral.
According to ARY News, the conflict relates to non-exportable trophy hunting permits and quotas for wild goats in KP. The provincial Wildlife Department has written a letter to the Secretary Forests KP, seeking the removal of a federal ban imposed on hunting.
In the letter, the Chief Conservator Wildlife informed the Secretary Forests that the federal government has imposed a ban on the non-exportable hunting of markhor, ibex, and grey goral. The ban was reportedly enforced because prior approval from the federal government was not obtained.
The letter states that in October 2024, permission was granted for the non-exportable hunting of six markhor in Kohistan and Chitral. Acting on this decision, the KP Wildlife Department fixed a quota of six markhor. Approval had also been granted for non-exportable quotas of grey goral and ibex.
The Wildlife Department maintained that non-exportable hunting falls under provincial jurisdiction. It added that the KP government has already auctioned hunting permits for 10 markhor, 31 ibex, and six grey goral.
During the current year, nine non-exportable markhor permits were successfully auctioned, and permits were issued to the successful bidders. The auctions generated US $553,000 in revenue.
The letter argued that the ban imposed by the federal Sites Management Authority contradicts its own earlier decisions, creating administrative and legal confusion over trophy hunting regulations in the province.
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