Skyrocketing rates of butchers

Rawalpindi : All is set to celebrate Eidul Azha tomorrow (Wednesday), but the residents are in search of butchers to slaughter their sacrificial animals during Eid days. Professional and non-professional butchers are demanding 100 per cent more rates as compared to the last year to slaughter animals.

After buying expensive animals, people are finding it hard to hire professional butchers at affordable rates, as professional butchers are already booked and demand Rs7,000 to slaughter a goat and Rs15,000 to 20,000 for a bull on first day of Eidul Azha. On the second day, butchers are demanding Rs5,000 for a goat and Rs10,000 to 12,000 for a bull while on the third day of the Eid they are demanding reasonable rates to slaughter animals.

Many residents are trying to hire butchers in advance for slaughtering their animals on the first day of the Eid as their demand is on the rise.

On the other hand, Jamia Masjid Road, Fawara Chowk, Dalgaran Bazaar and Banni Chowk are seen jam-packed with ‘non-professional’ butchers providing services on cheaper rates. But, people are preferring to slaughter their animals from processional butchers. “A butcher should be hired as early as possible to avoid an awkward situation on Eid day," said a resident Muhammad Mukhtar.

In the present days of price hike, the trend for collective sacrifice is on the rise and the butchers are receiving a large number of requests from the people for such slaughtering due to the fact that it helps them offer an affordable sacrifice.

Another resident of Mohanpura Muhammad Ilyas said that he could not afford to hire a butcher at his own so he has decided to put his share in collective sacrifice (qurbani). It was difficult to buy an expensive animal and to hire an expensive butcher to slaughter, he said.

Rawalpindi Butchers Welfare Association General Secretary Nadeem Qureshi said that a number of people are visiting his shop daily, placing orders for slaughtering the animals on Eid day and chopping off the meat at their respective places. Majority of people are preferring to slaughter their animals on first day of the Eid therefore rates are high, he said.

The Deputy Commissioner (DC), Rawalpindi Umar Jhangir said that enough measures have been taken to ensure cleanliness during Eid days. Municipal staff, RWMC staff and other civic agencies will remain alert with waste transfer vehicles and remains will be taken to distant areas for disposal, he added.

The city district government, Rawal-pindi has prepared all arrangements to cope with post sacrificial problems all around.