Karachi: The recent violence in outlying parts of the city has led to the adoption of a new trend of buying sacrificial animals online, PPI reports.

Instead of going to cattle markets this Eidul Azha, many Pakistanis are preferring to use online Qurbani services such as BakraOnline, to avert security risks and hassles.

Meanwhile, traditional animal dealers continue to wait for buyers to turn up. In Karachi especially, demand for sacrificial goats and cows has been low following an economic meltdown and fears of unrest in outlying areas of the city.

PPI reports that many dealers have returned to their villages in interior Sindh without selling their cattle due to the violence in Karachi a few days ago.

According to a survey conducted by PPI, the new 'online goat markets' are providing photos, videos, and other descriptions such as the type and price of animals for sale.

Syed Muhammad Qamaruddin, a resident of Gulshan-e-Iqbal who purchased two goats from the online goat market, told PPI that he had been drawn to the online markets due to option of paying a price based on the actual weight of the animal.

‘In the traditional bakra markets the customers are seen haggling over the prices of the sacrificial animals… the animal dealers normally demand ten times higher prices,’ he added.

In the online gallery, details such as the weight, number of teeth, age, photo, price and the name of animal are to help customers select the animal of his choice. The animals' price may be a little higher but this is often compensated by the option of having the animal delivered to you.

If the animals are not the same as shown on the website, buyers have the option of cancelling the purchase deal.  This is how the websites won the trust of the customers, said Shoaib Manzoor, a resident of Gulistan-e-Johar.

Research and reporting by PPI. Dawn takes no responsibility for the content or authenticity of any external website.