Foreign hunters bag 10 Naurs & 5 Jharals in Dhorpatan’s first hunting season

KATHMANDU: In the first hunting season at Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve this year, licensed hunters have successfully hunted 10 Naurs (Himalayan blue sheep) and 5 Jharals (Himalayan tahr).

A total of 12 foreign hunters were granted permits to hunt 12 Naurs, 8 Jharals, and 11 wild boars in the country’s only hunting reserve.

The reserve covers 1,325 square kilometers, bordering Rukum, Myagdi, and Baglung districts. As of the 2021 census, it is home to 1,290 Naurs and 744 Jharals.

According to the Reserve Office in Baglung, one American hunter was unable to participate in the hunt, while another could not hunt a Naur. Additionally, hunters with permits for wild boars failed to hunt seven of the animals.

Pashupati Adhikari, the Reserve’s Information Officer, reported that hunters from the USA, Spain, Netherlands, and Mexico had secured permits for the season.

Although permits were available for Nepali hunters to hunt wild boars, no applications were received from them this year, stated Chandra Shekhar Chaudhary, Chief Conservation Officer at the Reserve.

The hunting season for this year has concluded, with the next season scheduled to begin in March and run through May.

Hunters, accompanied by a guide, a Reserve Office representative, and the Nepali Army, typically spend up to 15 days in the Reserve, which is divided into seven blocks for hunting.

Foreign hunters usually pay between Rs 2 million to Rs 3 million to cover the costs of permits, block reservations, helicopters, guides, and necessary hunting equipment.