Karachi:
The citizens of the city find it difficult to get professional butchers to carry out the Sunnah of Hazrat Ibrahim (AS). Professional butchers have increased their rates by 30 to 50 percent this year.
Babu Qureshi, a professional butcher from Liaquatabad, explained that the rates to kill animals vary according to the area and the weight or size of the animal. He pointed out that professional butchers generally stop taking reservations three days before Eidul Azha.
This year, the minimum charge for killing a large and light animal on the first day of EID varies from RS20,000 to RS30,000 and more. On the second day, the rate falls to around RS18,000, and on the third day, it decreases even more to approximately RS15,000. Heavier weight rates with excess weight are negotiated before sacrifice.
Professional butchers have taken reservations for multiple animals at neighborhood level instead of single animals. Last year, professional butchers charged RS15,000 to RS25,000 or more for killing a large animal. This year, rates for goats and sheep vary from 8,000 rupees to RS15,000. On the second and third day, rates for small animals decrease by 30 to 50 percent.
Qureshi added that professional butchers have prioritized reserves in exclusive neighborhoods where compensation is generally higher. In contrast, many areas of average and low income are resorting to seasonal butchers due to the limited availability of qualified professionals. Seasonal butchers who work daily and take butcher shop only during the eid-ha intervened to fill the void. They offer their services at rates from 30 to 50 percent lower than professional butchers.
These seasonal butchers often work in groups and have more demand in middle class areas, where they get better salaries.
Hurry to sharpen
People are seen buying new tools and the old women are sharpened for the preparation of the meat after the killing. As a result, the stores that sharpen the knives and the knives are overloaded with a large footprint of citizens.
In Al-Karam Square, Mohsin Ali, the owner of a store that sells and sharpens such tools, said that a wide variety of knives, knives (Bugdah) and skewers have a great demand. The prices of new tools for home use have increased by RS100 to RS400. Different types of knives per RS400 to RS2,500 or more are sold, while the price of a bugdah varies from RS800 to RS3,000.
Most people choose to sharpen their old tools, with sharp services that cost RS150 to RS200 per tool. Some people buy tools worth up to RS3,000 to prepare sacrifice meat.
Matanza accessories flies outside the shelves
Exponential amounts of carpets and palm baskets dated for Eidul Azha’s sacrifice purposes were sold, and sellers reported quick sales in the days before the festival.
Amir Uddin, a supplier that sells mats, baskets and wooden cutting blocks in Gharibad, explained that dates carpets are typically used to extend the sacrifice meat, while the baskets are used to distribute it. This year, in EID, mats were sold from different sizes per RS500 to RS1,000, and the baskets were sold for RS200 to RS400. Meanwhile, the cutting blocks were sold to RS100 per kilogram, and the little ones are sold for RS500 to RS800.
These articles are made of wood and are essential for the distribution and storage of the meat. People who make Sunnah of Sacrifice buy these items to facilitate the distribution of meat between family, friends and those in need. Temporary positions were established in several areas of the city to sell these products, providing temporary employment and additional income for many people, including street vendors and artisans who prepare these traditional items.
