KARACHI:
Eid ul Adha is the occasion when people sacrifice animals ranging from goats, lambs, and cows to camels. Given the high demand for sacrificial animals, temporary animal markets are set up across the country to sell and purchase both local and imported animals. Buyers take their children and families along with them to purchase animals for the holy occasion. The markets are extremely busy a few days before Eid with buyers coming in close contact with animals that are often infected with diseases. Most sellers fail to ensure that all animals are healthy and uninfected, which increases the risk of disease spread.
The government should take necessary steps to ensure that the animals being traded in markets are free of diseases. Teams comprising of veterinary doctors and technicians should be posted at all markets to ensure that this festive occasion does not become a source of disease spread and illness. Additionally, the government must take the necessary steps to ensure that animals are slaughtered at designated places where the remains of animals are properly disposed of.
The absence of such a system not only leads to an unbearable stench of rotting remains but can also spread disease and contaminate water. People should also be mindful of their responsibility in fulfilling their religious obligations. We must follow precautionary hygiene measures and refrain from slaughtering animals and throwing their remains everywhere. We must refrain from making this occasion a super spreader by fulfilling our responsibilities at individual, societal, and governmental levels.
Raja Shafaatullah
Islamabad
Published in The Express Tribune, July 6th, 2022.
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