Cattle sales peak in Ctg
A myriad of cattle being showcased for sale at Bibir Haat in Chittagong city for the numerous customers who arrived yesterday for a suitable bargain. Photo: Prabir Das
With only a day left ahead of Eid-ul Azha, sales in all eight cattle markets in Chittagong city were at peak amid rush of buyers yesterday. Cattle sales went up as prices of the sacrificial animals remained at a reasonable level for an abundant supply this year. In addition, traders who have come from different districts to these markets do not want to take back their cattle unsold by asking for high prices. A trader at Bibirhat Cattle Market, Jafar Ahmed, said he brought 50 cattle this year, all from Jhenidah, and had already sold 35 of them. The cattle could not fetch him big returns, as, Jafar said, he had to sell those at very low profit margins. Although the rush of buyers is huge, profits remain comparatively very low due to increased supply of cattle this year, he said. Sources said cattle, priced between Tk 25,000 and Tk 45,000, were in a very high demand this year in different cattle markets. Arshed Haider, a buyer, purchased a bull for Tk 32,000 from Bibirhat Cattle Market. For him, the price is reasonable. Thousands of traders from different parts of the country thronged the eight cattle markets in Chittagong since October 17 with lakhs of cattle, said market authorities. A leaseholder of Sagarika Cattle Market, Afsarul Alam Babul, said around three thousand traders with over a lakh cattle had gathered at his market. Traders have brought cattle from far-off districts of Kushtia, Chapainawabganj, Rajshahi, Bogra, Jhenidah, Meherpur, Faridpur, Comilla and Pabna, he added. Apart from the local cattle, a good number of cattle have been brought from the neighbouring countries including India, Nepal and Bhutan. Prices of these imported cattle are low compared to the domestic ones, said sources. Rafiq Sawdagar, a lessee of Karnaphuli Cattle Market, said, “A domestic bull has been sold at Tk 2.7 lakh, which was the highest priced animal so far this year in my market.” Though thousands of cattle from India, Nepal and Bhutan have been brought to his market, these are being sold at very competitive prices, he said. Rafiq said no incident of fake note transaction was reported in the market as the Bangladesh Bank had provided them with counterfeit currency detectors. Apart from the eight cattle markets, a good number of makeshift markets have sprung up in different areas across the city, including Chawk Bazar, New Mansurabad, Bahaddarhat and Kapashgola. Some of these markets have as low as 10-20 cattle only. Sources said at least 50 such small markets have been found in the city. People, who want to avoid the hustle and bustle of regular cattle markets, seemed to be happily buying sacrificial animals from these small markets. These informal cattle markets, however, have created a public nuisance, said locals, with traffic movement being disrupted frequently. Interestingly, around the cattle markets were seen a good number of makeshift tea stalls, entertaining buyers, sellers as well as locals. LAW AND ORDERAmid strict vigilance of law enforcement agencies, including police and Rapid Action Battalion, no untoward incident has taken place in any cattle market. Abul Aziz, a resident of Panchlaish area, who bought a sacrificial animal from Bibirhat Cattle Market, said he was happy with the law and order situation in the market. “The administration this year has not allowed anyone to keep cattle on the roads unlike previous years,” he said. The traders are also complying with the instructions, so traffic congestion on roads adjacent to the markets are not as severe as previous years, he added.
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