PESHAWAR: Trade activities at city cattle markets are gaining momentum with Eidul Azha round the corner, but no proper arrangements have been made for cleanliness even on the main roads of the provincial metropolis.

The local people fear that clouds of dust at the cattle markets may carry virus of various infectious diseases which can become a constant source of annoyance for them.

In addition, reports about presence of Congo virus has also sacred the buyers of sacrificial animals. The traders use all tactics for satisfaction of buyers to sell out their animals at all costs.

Most of the people present at the cattle market on Ring Road told this scribe on Sunday that they had just come to compare prices of animals at different cattle markets. They expected that rates would fall during the last few days because in routine the traders preferred to sell out the animals and reach home before Eidul Azha.

No proper arrangements in place for cleanliness

Another reason of the hesitation to buy the animals, the customers said, was the reports about presence of Congo virus in the animals.

Some residents of Gulbahar, led by Shah Zaman, said that most of the people had no space in their houses to keep the animals for long. They said that they would like to buy a sacrificial animal a day before or on Eid day to avoid complications due to the deadly virus.

Despite tall claims of the livestock department, there were no arrangements for anti-Congo spray at the market. Efforts were also made to get version of the department on its emergency telephone numbers but no one was available to respond.

Two traders, who identified themselves as Shehzad and Saleem Khan, said that they had seen some health workers on the working days but no one was there on Sunday.

However, one can enjoy the process of convincing, buying and selling the animals in and outside the cattle markets at Nasirpur, GT Road, Hazarkhwani, Ring Road and Sarband on the suburbs of Peshawar.

The prices are high as compared to that of last year. The businessmen themselves admitted that there was a difference of Rs10,000 to 20,000 in the rate of each animal on the basis of its size, weight and even look.

Some of the bulls at the markets, costing up to Rs0.5 million, await customers. The rates of goats, rams and sheep of reasonable size are about Rs25,000 to Rs30,000 per animal.

Almost half of the traders at the cattle markets belong to Punjab province. They complained that unfavourable diplomatic relations between Islamabad and Kabul had badly affected their business.

They said that transportation of animals to Afghanistan still continued despite strict checking at Torkham border but the traders had to either pay bribe to law enforcers or find other means to smuggle livestock to the neighbouring country.

At the Ring Road cattle market, the contractors have also raised the fee for exit of per animal from Rs800 of last year to Rs1,000. Besides, some people have started collecting parking charges. They charge Rs50 per motorcar and Rs20 to Rs30 per motorcycle at Ring Road even outside the market.

Deputy Commissioner Raiz Khan Mehsud told Dawn that administration had not given permission to anyone to charge parking fee and it would be checked strictly.

Published in Dawn September 5th, 2016