Govt urged to take steps for wildlife conservation.

KARACHI -- Pakistan's incredible wildlife is battling for its survival. It's time the government took solid steps for its conservation by tackling threats to its existence, including deforestation and human encroachment contributing to habitat degradation, stated the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-P) on Wednesday.

The statement was released to mark the World Wildlife Day 2021, which is observed every year on March 3.

This year's theme 'Forests and Livelihoods: Sustaining People and Planet' aligns with some specific UN Sustainable Development Goals that aim to conserve life and eradicate poverty.

'Many species in Pakistan, and globally, face mounting threats due to deforestation and human encroachment'

'Many species in Pakistan, and globally, face mounting threats due to deforestation and human encroachment which leads to habitat degradation, while new threats such as unsustainable infrastructure and climate change are also emerging,' said WWF-P director general Hammad Naqi Khan.

This situation had made the survival of species - such as snow leopard, Indus River dolphin, common leopard, pangolins, brown bear and white-backed vulture - increasingly uncertain, he added.

The Living Planet Report 2020 of WWF (international) shows that in less than 50 years, human activity has resulted in wildlife populations plummeting by an average of 68 per cent globally.

'If serious efforts are not made, some of these animals will head to extinction in the near future. With wildlife constituting a critical part of the ecosystem, this biodiversity loss will result in a planet that cannot support current and future generations of...