A total of 1,29,80,367 sacrificial animals have been readied against the demand of 1,07,2,394 animals for the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha, Fisheries and Livestock Minister Md Abdur Rahman said on Thursday (May 16).
"A total of 53,60,716 cows and buffaloes, 76,17,801 goats and sheep, and 1,850 other animals have been readied for Qurbani this year," he told the reporters after attending an inter-ministerial meeting held at the Department of Livestock conference room at Farmgate in the capital.
There will be 4,44,034 more sacrificial animals this year than that of the last year, he said.
Md Abdur Rahman said the government has already taken a policy decision not to allow any cattle from outside the country. "There is no scope of it. We will remain vigilant so that any cattle is being smuggled into the country," he said.
"Necessary steps will be taken to ensure the safety and security of cattle traders at the cattle markets. There will be close circuit television cameras to monitor everything until the end of Eid-ul-Azha," he added.
He also expressed the hope that the sacrificial animal market would have a friendly environment for both the buyers and sellers.
In response to a question on how the number of animals was determined and what kind of measures have been taken to fix the price of animals, he said, "The number was determined based on our department employees' surveys and information.
"The price depends on demand and supply. Since we have made the statistics through surveys, there will not be much differences between demand and supply."
Secretary to the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock Mohammad Selim Uddin, Additional Secretary ATM Mostofa Kamal, and the Department of Livestock Director General Dr Mohammad Reazul Huque, representatives from the Cabinet Division, Ministries of Railways, Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Division, Dhaka North and South City Corporations and Bangladesh Dairy Farmers Association were present, among others, at the meeting.
