Refused to accept more orders, Adnan Khan, a professional butcher of Hastnagri bazar was optimistic to earn maximum profit after receiving 50 booking of slaughtering sacrificial animals during Eidul Azha.
Engaged three seasonal butchers to meet the placed orders, the 25-year old butcher, who was sharpening his daggers and axes at Firdus market on Saturday told APP that he had received 50 orders of slaughtering sacrificial animals including cows, oxen buffaloes, goats, sheeps and camels on three days of Eidul Azha.
“Slaughtering of animals is an art. The butchers know where the slaughtered animals could be cut into pieces instead of makeshifts butchers or ordinary people, ” said Adnan, who inherited this hard earned profession from his grandfather.
“My grandfather has started this profession before independence of Pakistan and now our third generation was carrying forward his legacy despite ups and downs in his business,” he said.
He said rates of slaughtering of animals was based on day and time, adding on the first day Rs 4000 to Rs5,000 were being charged for slaughtering a goat or sheep between 8:00a.m to 11:50a.m with additional Rs600 for making meat on the first day of Eid.
Likewise, rate of slaughtering of cow and buffaloe was fixed at Rs10,000 to Rs12,000 per animal on Eid’s morning.
Rs15,000 to Rs 20,000 was being charged for slaughtering of camel and Rs7000 to Rs8000 for ox with additional Rs2,500 for making meat.
He said the butchers charge hefty amounts due to their professional work as there were many seasonal butchers, who know nothing about slaughtering and take more time than the professionals during the sizzling heat.
The seasonal butchers lack proper tactics to bring down animals to the grounds, slaughtering techniques and are also unable to cut the meat properly. These inept butchers also end up damaging hides of the sacrificial animals besides exposed citizens to injuries.
Because of exorbitant rates of professional butchers and high profit rates, the butchers of others districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have arrived to Peshawar to buck maximum gains.
Besides seasonal butchers, the unemployed labourers and youngsters of merged and settled districts of KP have also rushed to Peshawar to earn maximum profit.
“I came from Nowshera district to Peshawar following high demand of butchers and profit rate of sacrificial animals here,” said Zardali Khan, a non-professional butcher while talking to APP.
He said most of people were hiring nonprofesional butchers due to low profit rate compare to professionals butchers keeping in view of their financial status.
Zardali said he came from village Dheri Ishaq Pabbi where most of people slaughter animals themselves after performing collective Qurbani.
‘Ten orders of animals’ slaughtering was received by me on this Eid at Rs5,000 per cow as well as buffaloe and Rs2,000 per goat or sheep.
Following cases of lumpy skin disease in animals, he said most of educated people prefer to hire butchers to avoid exposer to the fatal infection.
Qaiser Khan, a resident of Wapda Town Peshawar said that it has become immense difficult to buy animal to perform sacrifice ritual due to the prevailing inflation and price hike in the country and we have to roam around the outskirts of the city to find animal on affordable rate.
Following buying of a suitable animal, he said hiring a professional butcher on minimal charges was another herculean task. Afghan refugees have also jumped in KP cities by receiving orders on relatively cheaper rate than locals.
Following high rates of butchers, many citizens have decided to slaughter sacrificial animals themselves despite scorching heat and cases of lumpy skin disease. Director, Livestock and Dairy Development KP, Dr Aftab Ahmad told APP that around 100,000 to 150,000 cattle were being slaughtered in KP on Eidul Azha.
In cities, he said trends of slaughtering of animals through butchers were higher than villages.
He said that around 70 to 80 percent cattle are being brought form Punjab for sacrifice on Eid days.
The transportation of sacrificial animals to Afghanistan were major reason behind hike of sacrificial animals prices in KP that needed to be regulated.
Dr Aftab said that several checkpoints were established with the assistance of provincial government at various places on highways connecting KP with merged districts to control menace of cattle smuggling.
Dr Aftab said the department has deployed teams in different cattle markets for monitoring of animals and spraying of insecticides.
Similarly, check posts have been established at all the entry points of the province to check all animals.
Dr Aftab Ahmad urged the cattle owners to ensure cleanliness and use mosquito repellent as safety measure for protection of animals from lumpy skin disease besides adopting precautionary measures during slaughtering
He suggested regulation of butchers business and fixation of slaughtering rate of animals on occasion of Eidul Azha.
