Demand for sheep, goats up in Hyderabad ahead of Bakrid

The silver lining this time is there is no major increase in the prices of livestock.

Hyderabad: With Eid-ul-Adha popularly known as Bakrid round the corner, the demand for cattle has sharply increased in the city. The silver lining this time is there is no major increase in the prices of livestock. The festival is celebrated on the 10th day of the Islamic calendar month of Dhul Hijjah, it is also the last month of the Hijri calendar.

Sheep and goats are sacrificed on a large scale in the city. Sheep traders from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka bring the livestock to the temporary markets in the city three days before the Eid ul Adha, said Shamsheer Khan, a cattle trader at Jiyaguda market.

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Jiyaguda market is the most popular market where around 300 traders gather to do business during Bakrid. The market runs around the year but only 100 traders gather during normal times.

This year, a sheep yielding around 12 kg of meat is being sold for Rs 12,000. “People purchase a sheep weighing between 11 kg and 14 kg for Qurbani (sacrifice). Some families go for heavier sheep weighing between 25 kg and 30 kg and it costs around Rs. 30,000,” said Mohd Imtiyaz, a commission agent at Jiyaguda.

Several temporary markets are set up Chanchalguda, Nanal Nagar, Mehdipatnam, Musheerabad, Golnaka, Falaknuma, Khilwat, Chandrayangutta, Banjara Hills, Zehra Nagar, Borabanda, Jalpally, Shaheennagar, Kishanbagh, Azampura, AC Guards and others areas in the city in the run up to the festival.

Muslims sacrifice sheep or cattle as a practice and divide the meat into three equal parts. While one part is distributed among friends, acquaintances and relatives, the other part is for the poor and the destitute and the remaining one they keep for themselves.

With changing times people have started to opt for the ‘Qurbani service’ providers wherein one has to pay a certain amount for the animal to them. The team takes care of sacrificing the animal, cleaning, piecing and packing the meat, and sends the packets to the family for distribution.