The government will sit with stakeholders on September 20 next to fix the procurement prices for rawhide of sacrificial animals amid strong opposition from the tanners, sources said.
The procurement prices of rawhide are likely to be fixed at the scheduled meeting to be presided over by senior secretary of the ministry of commerce (MoC), they said.
Preservation of the rawhide of sacrificial animals, processing of the item and other relevant issues will be discussed at the meeting.
More than 12 representatives from different leather associations and the FBCCI (Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry) and high government officials will be present in the meeting.
Last year, the maximum procurement prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals had been fixed at Tk 70-75 per square feet in Dhaka and Tk 60-65 outside the capital during the Eid-ul-Azha.
The price of goatskin was Tk 30 to Tk 35 per sft and the price of buffalo hide Tk 40-45 per sft throughout the country.
Bangladesh Tanners Association (BTA), Bangladesh Hide and Skin Merchants Association (BHSMA) and Bangladesh Finished Leather, Leather-goods and Footwear Exporters' Association (BFLLFEA) had jointly announced the prices at a press conference in the city.
The government has already urged the tanners to fix prices of rawhide much ahead of the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha to prevent any artificial price-hike of the item.
Talking to the FE, former BHSMA president Ali Hussain said: "We do not agree that the procurement price of rawhide of sacrificial animals should be fixed for the upcoming Eid festival. We could not sell the leather collected last year due to recession and decline in its prices in and outside the country. Till date, about 50-60 per cent leather of last year has remained stored in our warehouses."
"Prices of gold, oil and other essential items are declining across the world. For this, we do not want to fix the procurement prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals this year," he said.
"We are facing fund crises now as a large amount of money is being spent for relocation of our tanneries from the city's Hazaribagh to the newly-built Savar hub," he added.
The seasonal traders (forias) will make profits, if the procurement prices of rawhide are fixed at last, he also mentioned.
BTA president Md Shahin Ahmed could not be contacted for his comments despite attempts made several times over phone.
The tannery owners are also not willing to fix the procurement prices of rawhide of sacrificial animals because of the complexity the process involves, sources concerned said.
There arises arose some sort of complexity in fixing prices of rawhide almost every year and this year too it might crop up, they said.
According to the MoC, about 7.0 million sft rawhide is collected during the Eid-ul-Azha.
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