Increase human interventions likely to affect wildlife habitats at Margalla Hills

Islamabad:The increase in flow of vehicular traffic and human activities in the Margalla hills is likely to again push back most of the wild animals to far away habitats for their survival.

The appearance of rare wild animals in the Margalla hills during lockdown due to coronavirus pandemic proved that if human activities are slowed down then wildlife would return back to their original habitats.

But now the situation is fast changing day by day as scores of people are visiting different areas of the Margalla hills for recreation and get-togethers soon after the end of months-long lockdown.

Kashif Mishwani, a conservationist, said the local governments in the world often provide limited visiting hours to the environmentally protected areas to protect wildlife and natural environment.

“Now the time has come that the concerned authorities should allow entry to the visitors for limited hours otherwise it will become difficult to protect the natural environment of the Margalla hills,” he said.

He said “I have gone through a survey that states that forty five percent of the park area is in a ‘bad shape’ while eight percent has been partially ‘degraded’.” Section 21 of the National Park ordinance allows “provision for access roads to, and construction of rest houses, hotels and other buildings in the National Park along with amenities for public without impairing the object for which it is declared a national park.”

The restaurants and other concrete buildings in the Margalla hills have affected the ‘buffer zone’ that was naturally created between the humans and the wild animals. Now the human intervention is reaching new heights thus posing threats to natural habitats of the wild animals.

Arif Nawaz, an environmentalist, said “There should be clear-cut distribution of administrative powers so every government department associated with Margalla Hills National Park must know its role and act accordingly.”