MULTAN City News

Decorated animals attract buyers in Multan

From Nadeem Shah

MULTAN: The sacrificial animals are decorated on the eve of Eidul Azha in all cities but they are decorated in unique styles in Multan.

The sellers of sacrificial animals decorate their animals to attract buyers. The decorated animals are attracting citizens more than other animals and their owners are demanding desired prices. The vendors of decoration accessories have set up their stalls close to the cattle markets to attract the owners of sacrificial animals. In the beginning, the sale was slow, but now it is picking up.

Amirullah carrying animal decoration accessories on his shoulders moves in the cattle market to earn his livelihood. “The buyers purchase animals’ decoration items when they decide to buy a sacrificial animal”, he says. The decoration items are bright and attractive and in shining colours, and especially designed for goats, sheep, cattle and camels. An ordinary person may not differentiate, but there is a difference between ‘jewellery’ for cows and sheep. Prices may be a little higher but the people purchase these items. Traditional decoration items are brought from Sahiwal, Kasur and interior Sindh to Multan and are available at stalls in and around the cattle markets. A round belt with small bells, sets of Payals, Jhanjars and Ghangroos are essential accessories of animal jewellery sets.

A buyer, Muhammad Anwar, says: “Citizens are using different kinds of colorful garlands of beads, crowns and bells to decorate their sacrificial animals.” He buys a cow worth Rs 60,000, he says, adding that he is decorating his cow with garlands and beads.

The buyers complain that decoration item sellers are charging high prices. One pair of payals is available at Rs 350 to Rs 400 in the open market but it is being sold in the cattle market at Rs 525 to Rs 600. The round belt with small bells is available at Rs 400 to Rs 500 instead of Rs 300.

The decoration accessories sellers are of the view that price hike and inflation are responsible for high prices of decoration items.