Nainital, Nov. 22 -- Uttarakhand high court on Friday issued notices to the central and state governments on a petition seeking a ban on angling, citing cruelty to fish in the name of sport. The matter will next be heard on December 11. The division bench of chief justice G Narendar and justice Subhash Upadhyay was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Jai Raj, former head of forest force (HoFF), Uttarakhand. Jai Raj, who appeared in person, said that angling involves pulling fish out of the water with hooks and releasing them back after removing the hook, subjecting them to "severe and needless cruelty". "When I became HoFF in 2018, I banned angling in reserved and protected forests (buffer). But after my retirement in 2020, the state government lifted the ban. So a few months ago, I approached the high court through this PIL," he said. He argued that angling is being promoted across the state and in many parts of the country in the name of tourism and sport, despite provisions in the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, which define and penalise such acts. He said that after the ban was removed, angling has become widespread in the state, with even panchayat bodies issuing licences. He alleged that the state government's move violates central law. "I have urged the court that angling be banned not only in Uttarakhand but nationwide. The court has sought responses from both the central and state governments before the next hearing on December 11", he said. In 2018, Uttarakhand had become the first state in India to ban angling, an activity that involves catching fish using hooks and releasing them back, in rivers and streams in forest areas and tiger reserves. The then principal chief conservator of forest (PCCF) Jai Raj had issued an official order putting a ban on angling in forest areas, including protected areas and tiger reserves....