For those avoiding cattle markets, 'qurbani' is a click away

Websites also cater to people abroad who want to offer animal sacrifice on Eidul Azha.

KARACHI: If you don't feel like making your way through cattle markets crowded with buyers and animals, then log on to the internet for having a cow or goat delivered to your doorstep.

Qurbani Online is among the websites which offer this service, but right now their delivery is only restricted to Karachi. Their promise is to have the animal delivered 'at your home, at any relative's location or any charity organisation.'

Husnain Raza, co-founder of Qurbani Online, started this business about seven years back with two other friends. "Keeping in mind Karachi's halaat [law and order situation], we turned to online business. Carrying cash in the city has become very difficult over time," he told The Express Tribune. "Our target marker is middle class and we cater to them at a lower rate than the one at mandi [cattle market]."



An IT programmer by profession, he initially faced difficulties in dealing with the rural people. But as he mingled with them, Raza started to understand their mannerisms and now he is able to rear goats in places across Sindh - such as Tando Adam, Tando Allah Yar, Mirpurkhas and Judo, where he has reared 4,000 goats this year.

Apart from having online placements on Facebook, Twitter, OLX, Qurbani Online also has a physical sale point at Soldier Bazaar. "One of the main reasons we started this venture was to avoid the mandi hassle, as there are plenty of people like us who find it to be problematic," he said while explaining the concept. "We also wanted to counter the rates for animals at cattle markets by offering them for a lower price."

Qurbani made easy

Mahmood Hussain Siddiqui started his business five years ago, but his target audience also includes people abroad. Qurabni.com.pk offers its services to people all over the world. However, he has seen a decline in the number of orders placed over the recent years. "The cutback is mostly because of the expenses involved in the sacrifice of animals," he said. "We also cater to locals but the service is particularly meant for those who can't come to their homeland and perform the annual ritual of Qurbani. Last year, all the meat collected was donated to the Saylani Welfare Trust."

Local business booms

Though the business has gone down for Siddiqui, it has gone up for Raza. The former said that less than 50 people have placed orders this year while the latter has reared 4,000 goats in rural Sindh and believes that not a single goat would be left by Eidul Azha.

Price is also a factor — Raza said he sells a goat in the range of Rs10,000 to Rs12,000, pointing out that cattle markets have started selling them from Rs25,000 up. Siddiqui's rate for a goat also starts at Rs22,000 and a cow costs between Rs60,000 and Rs100,000.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 14^th, 2013.