The rawhide sales during this Eid-ul-Azha have seen haphazard management and a fall in prices, even though Commerce Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin on Sunday claimed that rawhides of the sacrificial animals are being sold in the country at government-fixed prices.
People were seen dumping skins under the ground or throwing them in the streets after the traders offered prices much below the government rate. A video of seasonal traders throwing skins into a river also went viral.
Traders alleged that the depot owners were forming syndicates to reduce the prices of cow and goat skins.
This year, although the price has been increased by Tk5, rawhide is not being sold at the government-set price.
Nurul Absar, who had brought 529 rawhides from Rangunia of Chittagong, went to the city’s Atura depot area on Saturday night. Unable to sell the skins by Sunday morning, he decided to leave them on the road and go home.
Many seasonal vendors came to the Atura depot, but they were unable to sell the skins even at the purchase price. Some have buried their rawhides, and some left them on the road. Of course, some have sold it at a loss.
The situation is the same in Dhaka, as per information obtained by the daily Prothom Alo after visiting Mohammadpur, Science Lab and Posta areas of the capital on Saturday.
Reports say most of the raw skins of large cows are being sold at Tk700-900. The price of a small cow skin went up to Tk600. However, many say they could not sell the seven kins at Tk150.
The removal of waste in Dhaka has also been delayed, with the streets littered with piles of cow waste for hours.
However, the LGRD adviser, Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain, a student representative who has been under severe criticism for corruption and nepotism, on Sunday morning claimed that the government had removed 100% of waste from 487 wards under 12 city corporations.
Later, the Dhaka North City Corporation admitted that they could not collect all the waste and that it would take some time.
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