A REPORT in our daily mentioned that the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) and the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) are going to set up 18 makeshift sacrificial cattle markets in different parts of the city ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, one of the largest religious festivals of the Muslims. The cattle markets will be inaugurated just three days before the Eid. The DSCC has fixed 11 places for cattle markets this year. But it surprisingly excluded Naya Bazar-Armanitola, city’s well-known and second largest sacrificial haat for years, and included Delwar Hossain Playground, close to it, in order that the buyers can find their way to the cattle market easily.
The tenders were invited for 11 markets. The process of allocating six of them is on. As there is no playground at Kamrangirchar, the Hafezzihuzur Road had been used for cattle market in the past. It created a lot of troubles for the local residents, who have demanded shifting of the market to a better place. No cattle market will be allowed on roads and unauthorised places. A number of vigilance and Mobile teams would work day and night for three days before the Eid to stop illegal cattle markets.
Khalid Ahmed, Chief Estate Officer of DSCC and Deputy Secretary of the government said. “If any one violates the rules, he or she will be liable to punishment”. The Corporation has fixed five percent hasil (one kind of tax on sale price). It means the buyers will have to pay Tk 50 for every Tk 1,000, he says. “If any one is found charging extra money, it will be considered as an offence. No restaurant, hotel and vendor will be allowed on the market premises to avert unwanted development, he said. “Bangladesh Bank will provide money counting and fake currency tracing machines, while the law enforcers will remain ready to meet emergencies”, says Khalid Ahmed. When asked about the removal of garbage from the markets, Superintendent Engineer Abu Saleh Mohammad Mainuddin of Waste Manage Department of DSCC said that the City Corporation officials would take necessary steps.
We hear the same stories over and over about how stringent punishment will be meted out to those who violate laws during Eid-ul-Azha but the same problems surround us every Eid. Cattle markets invariably stray to cover main roads, the stench from them is appalling and not cleaned properly every day, people throw dead entrails everywhere after the sacrifices, and the blood flow on the streets makes for a serious health hazard. All of this takes time for the Municipal authorities to clear up and this clearing up takes a long period of time every year. It is our hope that the authorities will be more vigilant towards the collection and clearing of garbage before and after the day of sacrifice so that the unwanted remains and entrails do not pose a health hazard to the general public. It is unfortunate that the act of sacrifice is not followed by the equally holy act of cleaning by our general populace.
