Sherry Rehman refuses shifting IWMB to Interior Ministry

Islamabad: Federal Minister for Climate Change, Senator Sherry Rehman on Tuesday refused to put the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) under the administrative control of the Ministry of Interior. The Board at present is a subsidiary department of the Climate Change Ministry.

She was expressing her views during the Senate Standing Committee on Climate Change meeting chaired by Senator Seemee Ezdi.

Senator Rehman said the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board was not going under the supervision of the Ministry of Interior. Under the Islamabad Wildlife Management Ordinance of 1979, the Board was mandated to manage and protect the Margalla Hills National Park.

“As long as I am the Minister, I will not allow the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board to be placed under the supervision of another Ministry,” Sherry Rehman said.

She added that the Margalla Hills National Park was declared a protected area some 42 years ago and was considered a preserved zone.

She said Margalla Hills National Park needed to be demarcated to protect its habitat, wildlife and environment, adding, “We have to demarcate the national park to prevent illegal encroachment.”

The Minister informed the Committee that on her request the nomenclature of the Ministry of Climate Change has been changed as the ministry played a liaison and coordination role in environmental projects and agreements with international countries and forums.

She added that now the Ministry of Environmental Change has been renamed as Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination.