Govt to monitor rawhide prices this Eid

Meet with traders today to fix rawhide prices

FE REPORT | Published: July 25, 2020 22:59:35

The government has adopted a comprehensive monitoring plan to oversee the prices of sacrificial animal rawhide and its collection during this Eid-ul-Azha, according to the commerce ministry.
It will also monitor the preservation process and store related issues of rawhide and skin of such sacrificial animals under the plan.
The initiative has been taken mainly due to maintain the quality, preservation process and prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals during the second largest festival of the Muslims to be celebrated on August 01, 2020.
The commerce ministry will set the prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals today (Sunday).
For implementing the plan, the central joint coordinating committee, central coordinating and monitoring committee, control room will work on maintaining the quality, preservation process and prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals during the second largest festival.
Special monitoring teams for Dhaka and Natore districts will also look into the issue.
Monitoring teams comprising departments/agencies under the commerce ministry for divisional and district level and teams comprising Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection officials for all districts level will also engage with monitoring.
The outline and scope of works of the teams have been finalized at a workshop held at the commerce ministry on Saturday with commerce secretary Dr Md. Jafar Uddin in the chair.
Senior officials of the commerce ministry and representatives of agencies concerned attended the workshop.
The teams will carry out monitoring activities with help from local law enforcement agencies.
The commerce ministry will work all the time to keep the supply and prices of salt stable in the market to meet the demand for processing rawhide of sacrificial animals during Eid-ul-Azha.
"We want to ensure fair prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals during this Eid-ul-Azha," a high official of the ministry said.
Thousands of pieces of rawhide remained unsold during last Eid-ul-Azha. Having failed to get expected prices, hundreds of people buried their cow, goat and buffalo rawhide. Others sold them at dumped rates, he added.
The government will conduct a meeting with the traders' associations of leather sector and stakeholders today (Sunday) to fix prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals.
The meeting will be held in a virtual format using Zoom Meetings.
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi will preside over the virtual meeting. Commerce Secretary Dr Md Jafar Uddin will be there.
The meeting will set the prices of rawhide of animals to be sacrificed during Eid-ul-Azha, a senior commerce ministry official said.
Besides, collection, processing and other related issues about rawhide will also be discussed at the meeting.
The price of cowhide (salted/non-salted) was fixed at Tk 45-50 per square feet in Dhaka and Tk 35-40 per sq ft outside the capital during last Eid-ul-Azha.
Goatskin (salted/salt-free) was sold at Tk 18-20 per sq ft across the country while she-goat's skin at Tk 13-15 per sq ft.
The number of sacrificial animals may be fewer in the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha due to Covid-19 pandemic and flood across the country.
rezamumu@gmail.com