Cattle farmers on edge as Eid sales nowhere in sight

Alam Hossain took to rearing about 100 cattle at his farm in Bakalipara village under Chirirbandar upazila of Dinajpur in spite of the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic last year hoping to become self-reliant.

Accordingly, he invested Tk 9 lakh in the last eight months. He was expecting a good profit from sales ahead of upcoming Eid-ul-Azha as he thought normalcy would return after a year.

But the latest nationwide lockdown aimed at tackling the surge in coronavirus infections has shattered his hopes.

"Although Eid is only 10 days away, I have not been able to sell a single sacrificial animal," Hossain said.

His plight does not stop there.

He needs to spend Tk 13,000 a day behind feed and he would have to bear the expense until the animals are sold off.

Like Hossain, many farmers in eight districts of Rangpur division are passing anxious days as sacrificial cattle sales were yet to gain momentum because of the strict lockdown, under which non-essential businesses are barred from opening until July 14.

Farmers say the cost of cattle rearing has gone up by 40 per cent in the last six months because of an increase in the price of fodder and labour charges.

The demand might be lower this year than that a year ago as many families will refrain from sacrificing animals due to the fast-worsening pandemic and associated economic uncertainties.

As a result, many cattle could remain unsold and the farmers would inevitably bear the brunt.

Rafiqul Islam of the Pushpita Dairy farm at Akkelpur area in Rangpur city has 50 cattle ready for sale.

He took several to a local cattle market on Sunday and Wednesday but could not sell any as the prices being offered were far from his expectations.

He is also showcasing cattle for sale in an online market set up by the local livestock services department. But he is yet to receive a call from interested buyers.

"I will incur losses of Tk 20 lakh if the cows are not sold," said Islam. The farm has a monthly expenditure of Tk 50,000.

Shahadat Hossain of the Tantipara area in Rangpur city burnt through his savings to rear five cattle at his home.

"Because of the worsening of the pandemic, I will suffer losses,"
he said.

Buyers are offering prices that are Tk 15,000 to Tk 20,000 short of expectations, said Safer Ali, of the same area, adding that he had faced a similar fate around this time last year as well.

Jyotsna Begum, a livestock farmer at Daspara in Rangpur city, said traders from other districts usually start communicating with farmers a month before Eid to buy sacrificial animals.

"There has not been that much of communication from traders so far. Local consumers alone can't buy up all the animals brought up in the district as there is a surplus," she said.

"Sales will pick up after a week," said Mohammad Ismail Hossain, director of the divisional livestock services department in Rangpur, on Thursday.

Around 13 lakh sacrificial animals are ready for sale in the eight districts of Rangpur. The local demand is for around 10 lakh, he said.

Officials of the livestock services department in Rangpur and Dinajpur say sacrificial animals worth Tk 5 crore were sold online last year. They are expecting similar sales this year.

Rashid Mia, a grower in Tantipara, urged the government to keep open important cattle markets in the city maintaining health protocols.

"I will incur huge losses if the cattle remain unsold," he said.