Eidul Azha: Animal sales yet to pick up

Customers to wait for prices to come down.

LAHORE:

Eidul Azha is just two weeks away, but new cattle markets set up by the city government on the outskirts of Lahore remain deserted because of the high price of animals.

The city government set up seven cattle markets over the last few days, but only the one at Shahpur Kanjran has been able to attract dealers. Even there, few dealers and customers are present.

The average price of a goat has gone up from Rs15,000 to Rs20,000 thousands this year. Dealers are demanding Rs60,000-70,000 for animals which produce around 80 kg of meat. They say that they will not sell for less than Rs30,000-40,000.

Muhammad Sajjad, who came from Raheem Yar Khan with a flock of 50 goats, said that in his 24 years in the business, he had never known such a poor response from customers with Eid just two weeks away.

“I have been sitting here in Bakar Mandi for a week but haven’t sold a single animal,” he said. “The prices are high this year but what can we do? The price of feed has increased.”

He said that the longer the animals stayed unsold, the higher they cost him. “We have to feed them and give the Bakar Mandi contractor Rs100 per animal per week. The market brokers also demand Rs2,000 per animal,” he said.

Sajjad said he was thinking about shifting to the Shahpur Kanjran market as it might have more customers, but he would have to consider the cost of transporting the animals from Bakar Mandi.

Sharif Ahmad, a cattle dealer in Shahpur Kanjran, said that the administration charged him Rs200 per cattle for entry, and Rs150 per cattle for space. He said that he paid Rs30,000 to transport the animals to Lahore.

“In previous years we used to sell our cattle anywhere in the city, but this year the administration is not allowing us to enter,” he said. “Very few customers reach the markets as they are far away.

Those who come say the prices are beyond their budget.

They aren’t even bargaining. Everyone is waiting for the last few days as they think that the prices will come down.”

Tariq Zaman, principal staff officer to the district coordination officer, told the Tribune that the city government was only charging the dealers at Shahpur Kanjran, not any of the other markets. He said that this charge would be removed after October 24. “There are good facilities, including tents, lights and security,” he said.

Shahid Aslam, a customer, said that he had been quoted up to Rs30,000 for a medium-sized goat, when he had paid about Rs18,000 for one last year. “I am going to wait till the last few days as the prices might come down,” he added

Published in The Express Tribune, October 24^th, 2011.