Cross border cattle trade gains ground

Nizam Ahmed Indian cattle and goats have begun to largely appear in the country's animal markets, ahead of the Eid-al-Azha, traders and witnesses said on Thursday. They said like seasonal hides and skin vendors in the country many including Indians along the border between the two countries turn cattle traders weeks ahead of the Muslim festival. The seasonal cattle traders bring in hundreds of cattle, goats, lambs and even camels from as far as northwestern India to the border, to sell those to Bangladeshi traders. Some of them also handle illegally traded hides and skin following the Muslim festival of sacrifice, the traders said. Meanwhile, parts of most cattle markets in Dhaka and other big cities, have been occupied by cattle brought from across the border, witnesses said. "Not only the camel, but cattle, goats and lambs brought from India can clearly be distiguished from the local varieties of sacrificial animals," said Athaur Rahman Babu, a photo-journalist. However the traders, consumers and even the government officials including the law enforcing agencies never raise any question on the animals herded for sale as because they have a common conviction that had there been no supply through smuggling channels the sacrificial animals would have been more pricier. Thousands of such animals cross the border few days ahead of the Muslim festival in Bangladesh unabated as border forces of both the countries do not interfere in this holy trade. "Who cares the movement of animals across the border, are we carazy that we should shoot the animals if they cross border?" an annoyed official of Border Guard of Bangladesh (BGB) told the FE when asked. Catlle smuggling is a regular phenomenon in border areas, but during Eid-al-Azha it increases to an enormous size involving hundreds of cattle crossing border every day. People living at the border areas say the shepherds keep themselves hidden in the herd of animals while crossing the boders especially during the night, so that none challenge and detain them. Others say smugglers inject Diclofenac sodium, a banned anti-inflammatory drug to the cattle, which forces them walk faster and stay calm without barking to avoid attention of the border guards But cattle traders say they pay a sort of unofficial tolls to the border guards of both the countries to make the cattle movement hassle-free. It (unofficial cross-border cattle trade) is an open secret during Eid-al-Azha, and we do not stop cattles crossing in to Bangladesh from India, said another BGB official. It is an open secret in India also no quarter oppose it during this Muslim festival, although cows are revered by Hindus in India and beef is a taboo. However, there is no data avilable how many cattles or other sacrificial animals are brought from India, but the Bangladesh Tanners Association says some 8.0 million cattle, buffalos and goats are expected to be sacrificed this year. Though India outlawed cattle exports, the activities of well-organised traffickers are greatly overlooked, a Indian media report said. An estimated 1.5 million cows, valued at up to $500 million, are smuggled in to Bangladesh annually, providing more than half the beef consumed in the country, the Indian report said. Most of cattle are brought in to Bangladesh through Paschimbanga state, which shares a 2,100-km border with Bangladesh. Observers in India say the state's communist government maintains a neutral line on religion, allowing cows to be openly traded. Many in Bangladesh suggests that cross-border border trade be legalised, because most of Bangladeshis killed by Indian Border Security Force were found to be cattle traders, BGB officials said. Accoding to Indian Border Security Force (BSF) seven Bangladeshi people were killed between January to September 2011. In 2010 and the previous year the number of Bangladeshis killed were 32 and 55 respectively, Raman Shrivastava, head of India's Border Security Force (BSF) told reporters in Dhaka in September last.