Vendors flout ban on sale of sacrificial animals on roads

The Rawalpindi district administration, the metropolitan corporation and Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonment Boards have completely failed to enforce the ban on the sale of sacrificial animals on roads, streets and markets.

As a result, all markets, roads and neighbourhoods of the Rawalpindi city and Cantonments have been turned into cattle markets.

A large number of cattle sellers have preferred to sell their herd in the open market instead of taking them to the dedicated cattle market at Bhata Chowk due to what they said the increased market fee.

Earlier, the Rawalpindi Metropolitan Corporation, the Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonment Boards had banned the sale of sacrificial animals on stalls or streets ahead of Eidul Azha.

In this regard, the Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Tahir Farooq had issued a notification imposing a ban on the open sale of sacrificial animals. According to the notification, violation of the ban will result in the confiscation of animals and the imposition of fines.

However, sellers of all the adjoining areas of Rawalpindi district including Kotli Satyan and Murree have stopped taking animals to the dedicated cattle market and have started selling a pair of four to five small animals and two large animals at the temporary set up stall, streets and streets in the city. After selling the animals, the sellers bring more animals to sell them to residents of the garrison city.

Several areas including Rawal Road, Murree Road, Ghazni Road, Adiala Road, Sawan Chowk, GT Road Rawat to Sawan Camp, Faizabad, IJ Principal Road, Sadiqabad Road, Double Road, Syedpur Road, Bani Chowk, Misryal Road, Dhok Syedan ​​Road, Liaquat Road, Railway Road, Rahimabad Chowk, Chaklala Scheme-3 Road and Rehmatabad Road have turned into cattle markets. Sacrificial animals like goats, oxen and camels are being sold all day long till late at night on roads and streets.

A cattle seller, Sain Shaukat, said that the huge tax of Rs3,000 for large animals and Rs2,000 for small animals at the cattle market was adding to the cost of animals they did not want to lose customers.

Another seller, Ashiq Hussain, said that transportation cost has increased by 30 per cent and with the addition of the entry fee and fodder, the prices of animals go up further and most people could not afford to buy animals at exorbitant price.

Another seller, Malik Fayyaz, claimed that there was no arrangement of shade, water and electricity in the cattle market, so by roaming around in the city, they sell animals on roads and streets easily and at cheap rates and fetch a handsome profit.

Buyer Mehmood Khan said that the cattle market was far away and the fare from the cattle market to the city was up to Rs4,000. He said that the prices of animals in local bazaars were up to Rs20,000 cheaper as compared to the cattle market. “We are not insane to go to the cattle market and purchase animals at exorbitant prices,” he said.

Another buyer, Sohail Chaudhry, said that the rates in the cattle market were so high that bargaining could not be clinched while a deal can easily be made with sellers on the streets.

Another buyer, Ahmar Abbasi said that it become quite difficult to select and pick animals in the cattle market and it was also a wastage of time. He said that he purchased the animal from a roadside seller at a cheaper rate as compared to the cattle market.

Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Tahir Farooq said that there was a ban on the sale of animals in city streets, bazaars and roads. Complaints of violation of the ban have been received and notice has been taken in this regard, he said adding that action will be taken against those who sell animals in the city bazaars. He said that an operation against the illegal sale of animals will be launched and animals will be confiscated and the owners will be fined.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 27^th, 2022.