Eid-ul-Azha
Banglar Tiger: The big bull that's a big buzz in Bangladesh!
It's common for celebrities to have fans. But meet Banglar Tiger, who now has more admirers than a human celebrity.
Well, Banglar Tiger isn't any other ordinary bull -- technically a steer, a neutered male popular for its meat -- one finds strolling down the roads. But it's a pure Australian-Friesian variety cattle that weighs around 1,000 kg.
Read: Authorities disperse an illegal cattle market in Panchagarh
And for some reason, this giant steer has grabbed the spotlight in a remote Kurigram hamlet ahead of Eid-ul-Azha -- making news all over the country.
The four-year-old steer is owned by Rajikul Islam, a resident of Paschimdebattar village in Kurigram's Rajarhat upazila. The asking price of Banglar Tiger is Tk 4 lakh, but its owner expects a lakh more for the animal.
Read Digital Haat and more Qurbani Cow online shops targeting Eid-ul-Azha in Bangladesh
"I have decided to sell the steer as it is now suitable for sacrifice. In case the lockdown ends, I'll take Bengal Tiger to a marketplace and auction the animal," Rajikul says.
This is despite potential buyers flocking to his house every day.
"Such a giant cattle is usually not seen in the marketplace. So I have come to see him after hearing his story. I was surprised to see that such a giant steer could be raised at home," says Altaf Hossain, one such potential buyer.
Read:Authorities permit 3 makeshift cattle markets in Chattagram, set 17 conditions
Rajikul says the steer comes with a high cost of ownership. "I spend Tk 400 daily on Banglar Tiger. The bull consumes German grass, rice husk and maize, and is fully vaccinated," he adds.
According to Rajarhat Upazila Livestock Officer Dr Jobaidul Kabir, Rajikul gets expert advice from the livestock department. "The good thing is that he has managed to raise the bull successfully," he says.
Read:1.5 lac cattle ready for slaughter in Chapainawabganj, but will Covid-19 stand in the way?
Digital Haat and more Qurbani Cow online shops targeting Eid-ul-Azha in Bangladesh
With the digital revolution in Bangladesh, online shopping is on the rise. By doing this, people are saving time as well as getting the product of their choice while sitting at home. In today's busy world and the Covid-19 pandemic situation, going to the market to buy and sell cattle has become a huge hazard. That is why the cattle market in Bangladesh targeting Eid-ul-Azha goes online. However, selling cattle online during the Eid season has become a norm for the last few years. But it got focused on last year due to the pandemic.
Previously, different online platforms and private organizations were involved in selling cattle online. But this year Bangladesh government has taken the initiative named 'Digitalhaat' for the online cattle market.
Read Digital Cattle Markets in Bangladesh to Buy Sacrificing Animals Online
What is Digital Haat?
Digital Haat is mainly an online marketplace to buy and sell cattle online during the Eid-ul-Azha. However, it also remains active around the year. Due to the pandemic, Digital hats have been organized since last year. However, this year it is expected to get a massive hit. Last year, 27,000 cattle were sold, and this year the government has a target to sell more to sell one lac animals this year.
The e-commerce association of Bangladesh and Bangladesh Dairy Farm Association are implementing this year's digital haat under Dhaka North City Corporation as per the directions of the Ministry of Commerce.
However, it is mainly organized by Dhaka North City Corporation, but dwellers from other areas can also access it. Apart from this, other municipalities of the country will be able to use this platform if they decide to go online. The good thing about buying cows and other cattle online is that you can save time as well as you don't need to 'Hasil' either.
Read Digital Haat 2021 launched with target to sell 1 lakh cattle before Eid
How does Digitalhat Work?
It works like another e-commerce site. Sellers can list their cattle with the description, which will be visible to the prospective buyers.
If you are a buyer, you can check the cattle under different categories. You can sort the animals as per individual seller and the farms and other online marketplaces. Furthermore, you can talk with the owner or the organization if you like any cattle. You will find the phone number under the seller's name. Moreover, you will find all the related information with the advertisement.
However, if you select any cattle from any e-commerce site, you can pay online and get your cattle. The e-commerce will not get the payment until they deliver it; that is how your payment remains safe. The government will ensure it through the escrow system. Once you order and make the payment govt. Will hold it for you and release the payment after you receive the goods.
READ: Special cattle trains ahead of Eid-ul-Azha
Apart from ordering cattle, you can also book a slaughtering service. From last years' experience, online butcher booking has been arranged in this year's market. A maximum of one thousand animals will be sacrificed in the slaughterhouse. From there, the meat will be delivered to the buyer by 26 air-conditioned vehicles.
Live animals or meat, whatever is delivered, will be priced by the seller. No separate charge can be taken from the buyer in this regard. However, the buyer will have to book the slaughtering service by July 10. E-Cab will settle any disputes between buyers and sellers.
Digital Cattle Market in Different Districts around Bangladesh
The online cattle market is getting popular in different parts of the country. Due to the lockdown, physical cattle markets might not be allowed. Hence, the online market is the only solution. With that note, many districts have been adopting online haat culture.
Read Enough cattle in Bangladesh for sacrifices during Eid: DLS
For example, a page called Sreepur Online Pashur Hat has already been launched under the supervision of Sreepur Upazila Nirbahi Officer following the government directives to avoid the huge gathering and risk of the haat.
District administration of Chuadanga has also taken the initiative for the online cattle market. A Facebook page named 'Online Pashuhaat, Chuadanga' has already been opened to buy and sell cattle online during Eid-ul-Adha 2021.
Read Sacrificial animals: Chuadanga goes online again.
Other Non-Government Initiatives
Apart from government-monitored 'digitalhaat,' many e-commerce sites have also taken the initiative to sell cattle online. However, it is not new for e-commerce companies as they have been selling cattle online for the last few years.
Bikroy.com
Bikroy.com (www.bikroy.com) has been selling cows and goats for several years with a campaign called 'Birat Haat.' It also arranges the partner for the 'Kurbani.' If the buyer wants, he can get the cash on delivery or pay the price after checking the delivery.
Daraz
Daraz (https://www.daraz.com.bd/) has been selling cattle for Eid since 2016 through a campaign called 'Gorur Hat.' They are giving the opportunity to buy and see the live weight, color, teeth, etc., of the cows and watch the pictures as well as videos of the farms and cows.
Read Sufficient sacrificial animals available in Faridpur despite pandemic
Othoba.com
Pran-RFL Group's e-commerce company (www.othoba.com) has been selling cattle under the title 'Online Kurbanir Haat' since 2020.
shooddho.com
This online organic food platform is guaranteeing the supply of organic cows raised by the farmers. They directly serve as a platform for farmers. According to the company, they market the products of farmers-fishermen-weavers on the basis of the product price and not market price. In that case, even if the market price is low, they give importance to the product price. Dividends are later shared. They are following the same policy in the case of cattle. The company has arranged to show live videos as well as pictures of the cows. Home delivery is also free.
Other online cattle markets in Bangladesh
Vendors from different parts of the country are posting pictures of their cattle on ajkerdeal.com. DesiGuru.com (www.deshigoru.com) is selling sacrificial animals online. 'Madol' (fb.com/madolzonebd) is arranging cattle in a healthy way during this Covid-19 situation. The organization will provide all kinds of assistance, from buying the animal to cutting the meat and delivering it home. Another company, Hexatrading (fb.com/hexatrading) is taking full responsibility for the sacrifice and preparation of the meat. They have their own animal slaughterhouse.
Read Khulna braces for shortage of sacrificial animals ahead of Eid-ul-Azha
Govt to reach food to one crore families before Eid: Quader
About one crore poor and helpless families will get food aid from the government during the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha considering their hardships caused by coronavirus, Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader said on Tuesday.
The aid package is part of the government’s numerous initiatives to provide financial and food assistance to the helpless and working people who have been affected by the pandemic, Quader said in his regular briefing.
Referring to floods in parts of the country the AL leader urged his party’s members to stand by the affected people with relief and whatever else they need.
Also read: Govt to give Tk7.70 crore to Covid, disaster-hit families
He said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has already directed the administration to take early preparations to mitigate the possible damage and sufferings floods may cause.
Quader urged the administration as well as Awami League leaders and workers in the flood-hit areas to stand by the people.
He said it has always been the Awami League who reaches the affected people with relief and help during natural disasters.
Also read: Covid: 77pc families in Bangladesh hit hard by first wave, says study
Hasina greets Raushan, GM Quader ahead of Eid
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday greeted opposition leader in parliament Raushan Ershad and Jatiya Party chairman and deputy leader of the opposition GM Quader on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha.
GM Quader received his card from PM's protocol officer-2 M Abu Jafar Raju at his Uttara residence, according to a media release issued by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
Read:Sheikh Hasina gifts 2,600kg mangoes to PM Modi, Mamata Banerjee
Raju handed over the card for Raushan to her private secretary AKM Abdur Rahim Bhuiyan at Raushan’s Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban office, the release added.
Special cattle trains ahead of Eid-ul-Azha
The Railways Ministry has decided to run special cattle trains for ferrying sacrificial animals ahead of Eid-ul-Azha amid a worsening Covid-19 situation in the country.
Shoriful Alam, senior information officer of the Ministry, told UNB on Tuesday that Bangladesh Railways will operate the trains from July 17-19. "Their numbers will vary everyday, depending on the demand of the traders."
Read:1.5 lac cattle ready for slaughter in Chapainawabganj, but will Covid-19 stand in the way?
Initially the trains will run from Dewan Bazar of Jamalpur to Kamalapur railway station in Dhaka.
Besides, the ministry has also made necessary arrangements to transport animals from Khulna and Chapainawabganj. "If cattle traders are interested, special trains will be run on these routes too,” said Shoriful.
Eid ul Azha is expected to be celebrated in around a fortnight's time in Bangladesh, depending on the sighting of the moon.
Read: No cattle from outside country ahead of Eid-ul-Azha: Livestock Minister
The country is currently in the middle of a strict lockdown due to Covid-19. But many frontier districts have been in lockdown since the last week of May, when cases started shooting up after the Delta variant of the virus, then known as the Indian variant, was detected in many patients.
In this situation, cattle farmers may face some extra bottlenecks in transporting the animals to different parts of the country. So, the decision to operate a special train might come as a great relief to many of them.
1.5 lac cattle ready for slaughter in Chapainawabganj, but will Covid-19 stand in the way?
Livestock farmers in Chapainawabganj have entire herds of cattle they intend to sell for slaughter ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, despite being in the news recently for being crippled by COVID-19.
Officials at the district Livestock Department said around 1.5 lac sacrificial animals are ready to be sacrificed in the district for Eid-ul-Azha.
They are expecting to supply those to other districts after fulfilling local demand, they said.
Read: No cattle from outside country ahead of Eid-ul-Azha: Livestock Minister
The farmers of the district told UNB that there is no need to bring sacrificial animals from the other side of the border keeping in mind the Covid-19 situation, as they are confident that the homegrown cattle would be enough to meet the demand.
They also demanded the authorities concerned take steps to halt smuggling of cattle from India to ensure fair prices for local farmers.
Livestock farmers are now busy nurturing cattle in more than 13,000 cattle farms in the district. The financial health of these farms depends to a great extent on good sales for Eid ul Azha.
Local livestock officer doctor Mostafizur Rahman confirmed the numbers to UNB.
Read:Digital Haat 2021 launched with target to sell 1 lakh cattle before Eid
“The total demand of cattle for slaughter in the district is no more than 1.04 lac, but more than 1.5 lac cattle are ready in the district,” he said. That means the farmers plan to sell almost 50,000 cattle to other parts of Bangladesh.
Eid ul Azha is expected to be celebrated in around a fortnight's time in Bangladesh, depending on the sighting of the moon. The country is currently in the midst of a strict lockdown due to Covid-19. But Chapainawabganj has been in lockdown from the last week of May, when cases started shooting up in the district after the Delta variant of the virus, then known simply as the Indian variant, was detected in multiple patients in the frontier district.
In this situation the cattle farmers may face some extra bottlenecks in transporting the cattle to different parts of the country. They may possibly take a leaf out of the mango farmers in the district, another thriving trade in the district.
Read:Enough cattle in Bangladesh for sacrifices during Eid: DLS
While lockdown was imposed in Chapainawabganj, the 'seasonal mango business' was exempted from the restrictions, allowing for the region's famous mangoes to be enjoyed by the entire country, and the farmers to do a roaring trade in the seasonal fruit. Even buyers from outside the district were allowed to go in and buy mangoes.
Whether cattle farmers can benefit from a similar directive remains to be seen.
In the latest numbers, the Covid-19 situation has been improving somewhat in the district. On July 3 the district reported 61 new cases.
Oppo launches 'Trusty Rusty' campaign ahead of Eid
Global smart device brand Oppo has launched a new campaign ahead of Eid-ul-Azha to give smartphone users a chance to share their most trustworthy person's happy moments captured in pictures.
Through the "Trusty Rusty" campaign, smartphone users can express their gratitude to the person they count on most.
Read: OPPO partners with Thales for World’s First 5G SA-Compatible eSIM
To participate in the activity, the smartphone users will have to share their most trustworthy person's happy moments' picture and write why the person is trustworthy to them in the comment box of Oppo Facebook page.
The participants have to tag the person they trust most and share the post in public as well. While sharing the post, they will have to use the hashtag #OPPOTrustworthiness #OPPOEidHappiness.
Read: Oppo offers discounted prices on Reno5, A15s
To make this activity all the more rewarding for smartphone users, there will be exciting prizes for the winners.
The most beautiful trustworthy reason will be selected as the winning entry, and the top three winners will get wireless earphones Oppo Enco W11.
Read Best Upcoming Phones in July 2021 in Bangladesh: Official and Unofficial
Enough cattle in Bangladesh for sacrifices during Eid: DLS
The country is unlikely to face any shortage of sacrificial animals during the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha as there will be adequate supply of locally-reared cattle to meet the demand despite Covid-19 pandemic, according to authorities.
Fisheries and Livestock Minister Sham Rezaul Karim said, "There’re more animals in the country than the number required for the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha."
"This time there’s no need to import as the number of sacrificial animals is much higher in the country,” he said.
Read Digital Cattle Markets in Bangladesh to Buy Sacrificing Animals Online
Officials at the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) said 1.20 crore sacrificial animals, including 45.47 lakh cows and buffaloes, are available this time compared to 1.18 crore last year. The number of goats and sheep is 73 lakh 35 thousand while that of other kinds of livestock is 4765.
According to the DLS, some 95 lakh animals were sacrificed last year against an estimated 1.1 crore while 1.18 crore animals were ready for sale.
Quoting their official database, DLS assistant director (farm) Dr ABM Khaleduzzaman said more than 5 lakh cattle farmers are rearing the sacrificial animals to sell them at Eid-ul-Azha markets.
Read Special cattle trains ahead of Eid-ul-Azha
But farm owners and local farmers hinted buyers may have to pay a high price and see a little shortage in the city this year too as a strict lockdown and restriction on movement was imposed before on July 1.
The high price of fodder for the cattle will be another reason for the high price of the cattle as farmers have spent Tk 400 to Tk500 per sack of 37 kg feed for the last four months.
A farmer from Cumilla Shishu Mian said many seasonal farmers were seen busy collecting cattle from them 15 to 20 days ago. But they are not keen to collect now for the restriction as before.
Also read: Record-high cattle arrivals from Myanmar Wednesday
"More importantly, we aren’t selling our cattle to seasonal traders early as they are offering very little price compared to our invested money for rearing this year. So, we’re waiting for a good price," he added.
Amzad Ali, owner of Dhaka-based farm Amzad Agro, said the rearing cost was higher than the previous year which is forcing them to charge a little high price compared to the last few years.
People involved in the trade said a big portion of about 14 lakh cows that farmers rear are for the Eid-ul-Azha markets of the capital city. But the demand was low last year due to coronavirus and floods.
Also read: Cattle markets in Thakurgaon closed for a week due to Covid-19
Prices were low at the beginning, but spiked at the end because of fewer animals and more buyers. People, however, are worried about the price of sacrificial animals this year too because of the bad experience last year.
Many city dwellers are trying to make bookings early to avoid the last moment hassles.
Cattle smuggling on amid concern about Indian Delta variant
Residents of the border areas of the district are growingly worried about highly contagious Delta variant of Covid infection as smuggling of Indian cattle has reportedly increased ahead of Eid-ul-Azha.
The cattle smuggling has become rampant through the porous frontier of the district, alleged the local people.
Also read: Record-high cattle arrivals from Myanmar Wednesday
The smugglers bring the Indian cows during the night using both land and river routes, they said.
In the local haats the Indian cattle are available and traders from different districts throng there as the demand has spiked because of upcoming Eid festival of sacrifice.
Sufficient sacrificial animals available in Faridpur despite pandemic
Although many districts are bracing for a shortage of sacrificial animals ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha due to the worsening Covid-19 situation in the country, Faridpur is an exception.
Livestock farmers are now busy nurturing cattle in more than 5,000 cattle farms in nine upazilas of the district ahead of Eid-ul-Azha, the second largest festival of Muslims when over one crore cattle are sacrificed across the country.
Officials at district Livestock Department said more than 50,000 sacrificial animals are ready in the district for the Eid-ul-Azha.
They are expecting to supply those to other districts after fulfilling local demand, they said.
The farmers of the district told UNB that there is no need to bring sacrificial animals from the other side of the border keeping in mind the Covid-19 situation, as they are confident that the homegrown cattle would be enough to meet the demand.
They also demanded the authorities concerned take steps to halt smuggling of cattle from India to ensure fair prices for local farmers.
READ: Khulna braces for shortage of sacrificial animals ahead of Eid-ul-Azha
Eid-ul-Azha, the festival of sacrifice, is likely to be celebrated across the country in late July for the second consecutive year under the shadow of a surging Covid-19 pandemic.
Keeping the status quo in mind, relevant authorities have taken steps to shift the major part of animal sales online.
Faridpur District Animal Resources Officer. Nurullah Md. Ahsan said,"We have taken initiative to sell sacrificial animals online in every upazila of the district this year. Farmers are posting pictures of their cattle on dedicated facebook pages and online spaces alongside their weight and value.”
He said at least 48,349 cattle if not more have been prepared for sale in the coming Eid despite the district having a demand of only 36,000.
Syed Zahurul Alam, owner of Syed Shah Ali Baghdadi, a large farm in Gerda area of Faridpur Sadar Upazila, said his farm has 60 large and medium-sized cows. He said that he has bought improved breeds of young cows and made them bigger for the sacrificial market.
READ: 27,000 sacrificial animals sold online ahead of Eid
He also added that they did not use any harmful chemicals for fattening their cattle this year.
“Many have been employed in my farm,” the proud owner said.
Abrar Nowsher, owner of Tahera Agro in the same area, said 50 large cows have been prepared for the sacrificial market on his farm.
"We have raised the animals through proper care throughout the year and hopefully we will get a good price," he said.