The government has taken comprehensive measures for overall security and to stop fake currency at sacrificial cattle markets, Fisheries and Livestock and Agriculture Minister Mohammad Amin Ur Rashid has said. Special arrangements have been made by the administration to ensure the safety of traders, farmers and buyers at markets across the country, he said.

Special machines have been installed at the markets to detect fake notes, the minister said. Banking services are also available in market areas so that sellers can deposit money safely and, if needed, open new accounts to keep it.

He said this while talking to journalists after inspecting the sacrificial cattle market at Diabari in the capital on 24 May.

Answering journalists' questions, the minister said there was an adequate supply of animals fit for sacrifice, and this year's demand could be met with domestically produced animals. The cattle, goats and buffalo raised by the country's farmers are enough to meet the country's sacrificial demand, he said.

On complaints of lost or stolen animals, he said the administration, law enforcement agencies and volunteer teams were working round the clock at the big markets. Announcements by loudspeaker, monitoring and immediate assistance have been arranged to recover lost animals, and in many cases lost animals are being quickly recovered and returned to their owners.

On cattle from India or across the border, the minister said the government was taking a hard line against illegal entry of animals. Before Eid, an inter-ministerial meeting gave the necessary instructions to the border guard force, the administration and law enforcement agencies.

On prices, the minister said animals in the country are still mainly bought and sold by bargaining, based on build, health, size and appearance, so similar animals can fetch different prices. If a culture of selling by weight, or 'live weight', gradually develops, pricing will become more transparent and fixed.

With thousands of sellers and buyers in the market, it is hard to form any artificial syndicate, he said; prices are set by competition and supply and demand.

He added that the government had deployed the necessary personnel to ensure order, security and fair trade at cattle markets in the capital and across the country, and this would continue until Eid.

Present were Department of Livestock Services Director General Shahjaman Khan, department director Dr Md Boyjar Rahman, project director Dr Md Abdur Rahim, Dr Md Safikur Rahman and other senior officials of the ministry and department.

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