Animal sacrifice continued on the second day of Eid in the capital and across the country, while trading also went on at the markets. With supply falling short of demand, cattle and goats were selling at high prices at the Gabtoli animal market in the capital, and traders and farmers were asking as much as they could.

On the second day of Eid, Monday (11 July) morning, the Gabtoli market was packed with buyers who had come from far and near. With cattle and goats in short supply, traders were asking high prices, and buyers were paying them to fulfil the sacrifice.

Most of the cattle and goats brought to Gabtoli had been sold. Buyers were scrambling over the few animals left, which pushed prices up. More goats than cattle were seen at the market that day. Many who came for a cow but could not find one at a suitable price bought a goat instead; some had been unable to buy before Eid and came now.

Businessman Jamil Hossain came from Mirpur-12 to buy a goat. He sacrificed a cow on Eid day and on the second day bought a medium-sized goat for Tk 15,000. He told Jagonews: "I sacrifice a cow and a goat every year. I couldn't find a good goat before Eid, so I sacrificed a cow. Today I came for a goat. There are few animals in the market so I'm having to pay more."

Goat seller Ramzan Mia said he brought 200 goats of various sizes to the market a week before Eid. Of these, 164 had been sold and he would go home once the rest were sold.

Businessman Sohel Arman could not buy an animal before Eid because he was busy. He came with his family to buy a cow, and was seen going from place to place because he liked some animals but the price did not suit him. "I couldn't find one I liked within budget before Eid. There are far fewer cattle in the market so prices are high, and that's why I can't buy. But I'm still trying to buy an animal to make the sacrifice," he said.

Another cattle seller at Gabtoli, Haider Ali, said: "I brought 37 cattle and they're sold. Only four are left. I'll sell them and go home to my village in Bogura." He was asking Tk 50,000 each for the four small cattle.

Kamran Haider, who came to buy a sacrificial cow, looked at several and bought a medium-sized one for Tk 1 lakh 10 thousand. "Sellers are asking more because there are few cattle. I walked around a lot and bought the one I liked at a high price," he said.

Gabtoli market leaseholder Masum Billa told Jagonews that cattle and goat numbers had fallen sharply on the second day of Eid. Sales had been brisk over the past few days, and some traders had gone home with cattle they had not sold. With fewer animals, prices were higher.

He said there were more goats than cattle at the market. More goats were sold on Eid day, Sunday, but on this day cattle and goats were selling at higher prices than on Eid day.

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