Demand for sacrificial animals can be met locally: Traders

There won’t be any shortage of sacrificial animals as the local cattle markets have been ensured of adequate supply from domestic sources to meet the demand for the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha, said cattle traders and livestock officials in Chittagong.
The traders, however, informed that the prices might go up compared to the previous years.
While talking to this correspondent, traders at the Sagarika and Bibirhat cattle markets said that there would be adequate supply of cattle from different parts of the country. But they alleged that a section of dishonest traders were trying to destabilise the market citing crisis of supply.
Most of the demand during Eid-ul-Azha will be met by cattle brought from different parts of the country. Moreover, some cattleheads will be imported from abroad, including India, Myanmar and Nepal.
“I think the cattle markets in Chittagong will not witness any supply crisis even if cattleheads are not imported from India. However, the prices might go up a bit,” said Abdul Majid, a trader at the Sagarika cattle market in the city.
“There is a huge demand for local cows. For this reason, the traders bring cattle from different parts of the country, including Bogra, Kushtia and Chapainawabganj. Given the demand, the traders have already started procuring cattle from many parts of the country,” added the trader.   
 Ahmedul Haque, Chief Revenue Officer of Chittagong City Corporation, said that they have so far leased out two permanent and six makeshift cattle markets in the city for Eid-ul-Azha later  this month.  
“It’s not true that cattle are not coming to the local markets from India. The cattle markets in Chittagong are ready for the festival. However, the sales in the market are yet to kick off. The sacrificial animals would come on the markets within the next few days,” said Oli Ullah, Chittagong Cattle Cooperative Association Ltd.  
Abdul Hai, District Livestock Officer, said that there would be no adverse impact on the local market even if cattleheads are not imported from India.
“If we look at the sales of sacrificial animals last year, we will find that around 80 percent cattle sold were procured from local sources. The buyers showed very little interest in imported cattle due to various reasons, including artificial fattening,” added the livestock officer.
“As many as 27,000 cows are being reared in around 2,000 dairy farms in the district, while around 2 lakh cows are being raised by individual owners. Besides, around 17 lakh cattle including cows, buffaloes and goats are raised in isolated dairy farms and houses,” informed the livestock officer.      
According to the data provided by the District Livestock Office, a total of 4,06,000 cattleheads were sacrificed in Chittagong in 2013, which included 3,20,000 cows, 80,000 goats and 6,000 buffaloes.
A total of 4, 85,867 cattleheads were sacrificed in Chittagong in the last Eid-ul-Azha. This included 3,63,000 cows, 1,10,567 goats and 12,300 buffaloes.

Demand for sacrificial animals can be met locally: Traders

There wont be any shortage of sacrificial animals as the local cattle markets have been ensured of adequate supply from domestic sources to meet the demand for the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha, said cattle traders and livestock officials in Chittagong. The traders, however, informed that the prices might go up compared to the previous years. While talking to this correspondent, traders at the Sagarika and Bibirhat cattle markets said that there would be adequate supply of cattle from different parts of the country. But they alleged that a section of dishonest traders were trying to destabilise the market citing crisis of supply. Most of the demand during Eid-ul-Azha will be met by cattle brought from different parts of the country. Moreover, some cattleheads will be imported from abroad, including India, Myanmar and Nepal. I think the cattle markets in Chittagong will not witness any supply crisis even if cattleheads are not imported from India. However, the prices might go up a bit, said Abdul Majid, a trader at the Sagarika cattle market in the city. There is a huge demand for local cows. For this reason, the traders bring cattle from different parts of the country, including Bogra, Kushtia and Chapainawabganj. Given the demand, the traders have already started procuring cattle from many parts of the country, added the trader. Ahmedul Haque, Chief Revenue Officer of Chittagong City Corporation, said that they have so far leased out two permanent and six makeshift cattle markets in the city for Eid-ul-Azha later this month. Its not true that cattle are not coming to the local markets from India. The cattle markets in Chittagong are ready for the festival. However, the sales in the market are yet to kick off. The sacrificial animals would come on the markets within the next few days, said Oli Ullah, Chittagong Cattle Cooperative Association Ltd. Abdul Hai, District Livestock Officer, said that there would be no adverse impact on the local market even if cattleheads are not imported from India. If we look at the sales of sacrificial animals last year, we will find that around 80 percent cattle sold were procured from local sources. The buyers showed very little interest in imported cattle due to various reasons, including artificial fattening, added the livestock officer. As many as 27,000 cows are being reared in around 2,000 dairy farms in the district, while around 2 lakh cows are being raised by individual owners. Besides, around 17 lakh cattle including cows, buffaloes and goats are raised in isolated dairy farms and houses, informed the livestock officer. According to the data provided by the District Livestock Office, a total of 4,06,000 cattleheads were sacrificed in Chittagong in 2013, which included 3,20,000 cows, 80,000 goats and 6,000 buffaloes. A total of 4, 85,867 cattleheads were sacrificed in Chittagong in the last Eid-ul-Azha. This included 3,63,000 cows, 1,10,567 goats and 12,300 buffaloes.