Dhaka, Nov 6 (bdnews24, com) ? Business was booming in the capital's Gabtoli and temporary cattle markets well into the night after a fresh influx of cattle late in the evening of Eid-ul-Azha's eve, but prices were hefty.
The buyers of sacrificial animals were perplexed on Sunday to find most of the cattle heads had already sold out in most of the 19 markets of the capital after heavy trading on Saturday. It lead to panic-buying amid fears that cattle are running out and buyers were found waiting in the evening.
But bdnews24.com correspondents reported trucks carrying cattle coming into the city in the evening.
Cattle dealers and 'Haat' people said that 75 percent of the cattle heads were sold out in between Saturday afternoon and night.
A businessman in the Gabtoli haat told bdnews24.com more cattle would come in at night. Around 9pm, Haat owners said at least 2,000 trucks had entered the capital.
Despite the fresh inflow, however, prices remained high in most places.
Akhter-uz-Zaman, owner of the Haat at Banani-Kakali Rail Crossing, told bdnews24.com their Haat was packed up in the afternoon since most of the cattle were sold out. But it opened again in the evening as a fresh haul started coming in.
At midnight there were some hundred cattle heads in that Haat.
Asked why the sudden crisis of cattle happened earlier in the day, several businessmen said sellers were discouraged from coming to Dhaka because of the low prices prevailing up to Saturday. Many were locked up in traffic, they added.
Earlier in the day, Nuru Sarder of Sirajganj told bdnews24.com he had brought 49 cattle heads for sale to the Poly-Technique Maidan market. Out of those, 35 were sold out during afternoon and night of Saturday.
Nuru told bdnews24.com that prices rose sharply after Ashr prayer on Saturday, in keeping with the sudden spike in demand.
Hafiz, a Haat Management Committee member said on Sunday, "There are more buyers than cattle heads for sale in the Haat now. So, the dealers are taking advantage price of the few cattle heads not disposed of yet by jacking their prices.
"A cow that fetched Tk 30,000 on Saturday is selling now for Tk 45,000."
A buyer, engineer Hafiz Sikder, who came to make a buy in the haat, said, "The cow which I had bought for only Tk 35,000 last time is not available for even Tk 60,000 this time."
Similar was the situation at Kakali Haat, leading to apprehension that thousands of people might have to go without sacrifices this time.
Asked for the reason, one cattle seller Mobarak said, "The cost of cattle-raising is the prime cause. About 35 truck-loads of cattle heads used to arrive from Rajapur of Natore every year. But this year only 15 trucks have come so far."
Sohel Ahmed, cattle head dealer of Gabtali Haat told bdnews24.com, "There are too many buyers with too less number of cattle heads in the haat so the price has doubled."
The situation was no different in Banani, Badda, Banrupa and other cattle markets.
However, finding the prices too high, quite a few people had to be content with goat buys to meet religious obligations.
According to a Banani Haat dealer, the prices of castrated goats also went up by about 200 percent.
The capital has 19 cattle haats including 13 approved by DCC.
The only permanent, recognised cattle market in the capital is Gabtali Haat and other temporary hats approved by DCC are: Jhigatola, Hazaribag,Taltala, Azampur Uttara, Balurmath, Gopibag, Meradia Bazar Khilgaon, Dhupkhola East End Club Maidan and Adarsha School Maidan adjacent to Golapbag Maidan, among others.
bdnews24.com/mmr/mah/sh/bd/0045h
Source: bdnews24.com
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