AS Eid-ul-Azha is around the corner, cattle carrying trucks heading to different cities are being subjected to extortion by local goons and politically empowered criminals and even the law enforcers. Besides, media outcry over health hazards of artificially fattened cattle force traders to give bribes to local government officials and law enforcers to avoid the mark of ‘hazardous cattle’, as the authorities are not equipped to detect artificially fattened cattle. While the country’s leather industries are booming and earning reputation for producing quality leather products, owners of leather industries and the government must take precautionary steps to prevent rawhide being smuggled out after the festival.
The cattle traders fear that they might have to pay handsomely to keep vigilance teams and extortionists at bay for selling their artificially fattened animals as the authorities declared that they would show zero tolerance to artificially fattened cattle traders. Though having no equipment to detect artificially fattened cattle, the authorities said they would depend on their perceptions to do the job — something which would open the gateway to bribery.
The ground realities leave no option to the buyers in the city but to remain satisfied with artificially fattened or even diseased cattle. Officials said that like previous years the two city corporations leased out all the 16 cattle markets under pressure from ruling party men. The politically backed musclemen have not only grabbed the markets on lease but they are powerful enough to force traders to sell on their terms. Meanwhile, cattle traders claimed that they have to entertain musclemen, and law enforcers in every ghat and port to reach cities’ cattle markets, which ultimately puts the burden on the buyers. The authorities said that they would provide security to buyers and cattle traders, check extortions and counterfeit notes, and any bid for unauthorized extensions of the cattle markets. But past experiences do not match their assurances.
State Minister for Home Asaduzzaman Khan recently stated that the government would take a zero tolerance policy when dealing with extortion ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, adding that the government would set up watch towers at key points on highways across the country. Let the State Minister worry about his responsibility about stopping extortion by his own party men. What we think must be done is to stop selling cattle which are obvious health hazard. Building police tower will not be necessary to save people buying poisonous cattle, if the State Minister so wants.