LAHORE: A total of 11 lions were recovered from a factory in Lahore’s Nawan Kot area after being kept there illegally. This discovery has raised concerns about the monitoring of wildlife regulations in the region, particularly with regard to the keeping of big cats in urban settings, which is prohibited under local laws.
The operation was triggered after a lioness attacked and injured a young girl in the Nawan Kot area. Following the incident, the suspects fled the scene with the lioness, but they were apprehended within a few hours. Authorities later uncovered a total of 11 lions at a factory in the area, including five females, three males, and three cubs.
Adnan Wirk, Deputy Chief Wildlife Ranger of Lahore, confirmed that all the recovered lions have been taken into custody and moved to the Lahore Safari Park. He also stated that a case had been filed against the suspects for keeping the big cats without the proper license.
Sources suggest that the lions were transferred from Sheikhupura to Lahore some time ago and kept in secrecy. However, Adnan Wirk clarified that it had not been confirmed whether the animals were indeed brought from Sheikhupura.
Under current wildlife regulations, keeping big cats without a license can result in a fine of up to Rs5 million and imprisonment for up to seven years. The annual registration fee for a single big cat is set at Rs50,000.
Last year, the Punjab Wildlife Rangers launched a campaign to register big cats, during which 34 illegally kept big cats were recovered from Lahore and other districts. In the same period, 587 big cats were declared for registration by hobby breeders.
While the formal registration process for big cats has not yet been initiated in Punjab, breeders and farmers who declared their big cats have been instructed to ensure that their breeding centers and farmhouses meet the prescribed wildlife regulations.
