Gilgit-Baltistan Cancels Trophy Hunting Bids Due to Low Revenue

The Gilgit-Baltistan Parks and Wildlife Department announced on Monday that it has canceled bids for the auctioned trophy hunting permits for the 2024-2025 season due to lower-than-expected earnings. According to Wildlife Conservator Khadim Hussain, only the exportable category of the auction was affected by the cancellation, while the non-exportable and national permits remain valid. “The bids in the exportable category, which included animals like markhor, blue sheep, and ibex, were too low, so we decided to cancel,” Hussain told a private news channel. A new auction date is set for November 25. Initially, on October 30, 118 permits were put up for auction for hunting rare species in Gilgit-Baltistan’s community-controlled hunting areas. The auction offered permits for four Astore markhor, 14 blue sheep, and 100 Himalayan ibex, but the highest bids received fell short of last year’s numbers. For instance, two markhor permits sold for $107,000 each, a steep drop from last year’s record $181,000. Similarly, Himalayan ibex trophies received bids of $6,700 for exportable and Rs. 760,000 for local permits. Blue sheep exportable permits, which previously attracted $26,000 to $35,000, only saw bids up to $11,200 this year.