With four days left in Eidul Adha, everyone, including those running related businesses, have become ‘very important’ as everyone rushes to make last minute arrangements for the festival. The transport vans are conveying sacrificial animals from remote areas to the city markets and earning handsomely. The butchers have also started putting up banners to attract while the shopkeepers have also displayed decoration strips, colourful ornaments and bells for the goats and cows. The knives’ sharpeners have also oiled their machines and are busy sharpening knives for Eid sacrifices.
However, the rates demanded by all these people are very high. The transporters said like previous years, the demand for transport is very high but people argue because of high fares. “I am earning around Rs 1,000 per day by transporting animals from the suburban areas of Lahore,” said Muhammad Abid, a transporter while talking to Pakistan Today, adding that he would not be free for the rest of the week. “I am getting customers daily and I have advance bookings for the next whole week for transporting animals,” he said adding the high prices of petroleum products and closing down of CNG were causing problems. “People often argue about high fares but we are helpless,” he added.
The butchers are also booking for Eidul Adha and are asking for Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,500 per goat or sheep and Rs 8,000-12,000 for a cow.
“I am fully booked for Eid and I have also asked for help from juniors to cope with the workload,” said a butcher Anwer Ali of Township. He said he used to earn around Rs 10,000 to 12,000 in one day. “The butchers don’t open shops after Eid, as they earn enough money during Eid days,” he added.
The customers have booked butchers in advance to avoid inconvenience. “Last year, I had to pay double to get my animals slaughtered since I had not booked in advance,” said a customer Yousaf Raza adding the rate of butchers and transporters was very high.
The blacksmiths are charging Rs 10 to Rs 15 for sharpening knives while colourful strips and bells are available for Rs 25 to Rs 100 per piece. “It is a seasonal job and we earn around Rs 200-250 per day by selling these products,” said a shopkeeper Abdul Jabar.
