Ahead of Eid, demand for Barinda cattle has risen in Chapainawabganj. Buyers are purchasing these cattle not at markets but straight from farmers' homes. Cattle from the Barind area are small in size, which is why they are called Barinda cattle.

Farmers say demand is growing day by day because the meat is more nutritious and tasty, and the cattle are also available at low prices.

In Jhilim union of Sadar upazila, Jebun Nesha was grazing cattle in a field. She told Jago News she had sold three cattle this Eid, which are locally known as Barinda cattle. "We don't go to the market to sell cattle. Buyers come to our house and take them, because demand for these cattle is high," she said.

Safiq Biswas of Guthail village in Nachole upazila said he has reared cattle at home all his life but does not give them concentrated feed. He grows paddy on 15 bighas every year and uses the straw as cattle feed.

Buliyara Begum of the Nezampur area sold two cattle this year. She said Barinda cattle fetch a good price because they are not fed any concentrate, so the meat tastes better. That is why buyers come to their homes to buy them.

Chapainawabganj district livestock officer Dr Golam Mostafa told Jago News that most cattle found in Chapainawabganj are of the North Bengal Grey breed, though some mixed types emerge within it. Cattle in the Barind area are small, so they are called Barinda cattle. "It is true that the meat of these local cattle is very tasty," he said. The country has many other breeds, such as the Pabna breed and Red Chittagong, but North Bengal Grey predominates in this district.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.