Absence of slaughter houses bring miseries to people: Mutton dealers
SMC has approved nearly ten slaughterhouses, need Mayor’s nod: Dy Mayor
Owais Gul
Srinagar, Feb 18 : With deadlock over mutton rates likely to end soon, the major demand of butchers and mutton dealers about the slaughter houses in Srinagar has not been resolved for long.
According to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), sources said that only one small slaughterhouse exists at present in Srinagar, which is located in Rainawari area of Srinagar.
However, the mutton dealers told KNO that the a small abattoir in Rainawari is not sufficient and many more which were in the government’s plan has not been approved yet.
Mehraj-ud-din, president of Mutton Dealers Association, said that the government has been announcing slaughterhouses for long but no mega abattoir has come up in Srinagar so far.
“I don’t know exactly but a big slaughterhouse has been constricted in Srinagar outskirts,” he said, adding that many places were identified for the purpose but the abattoirs have not come up yet.
He said that the absence of slaughterhouses has led to the sufferings of mutton dealers.
“There is an absence of government assistance on the issues either related to rates or other things,” he said, adding that it is the common people who suffer at the end.
“Everything should be done in an organized manner,” he said, adding that the government must strengthen its rules on the ground as well so that the people here could heave a sigh of relief.
Deputy Mayor, Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC), Parvez Qadri told KNO that he has sanctioned nearly 10 slaughterhouses within the Municipality limits when he was acting Mayor.
Nonetheless, he stated that since the finance issues are with the Mayor itself, he has not called any meeting in this regard after assuming the charge again.
Meanwhile, despite repeated phone calls, the city Mayor, Junaid Azim Mattu could not be contacted for the comments.
Pertinently, the government had sanctioned construction of modern slaughterhouse at the vacant land in Aloocha Bagh.
“Keeping in mind that as per a recent order from the Housing and Urban Development department, the land has been allotted to Srinagar Municipal Corporation for the construction of modern abattoir in Srinagar,” an order issued by then-Commissioner Secretary H&UDD Suresh Kumar vide order number 153 of 2011 dated June 22 read.
The decision, however, triggered controversy as scores of youth would use the vacant land as a playfield.
Notably, on September 07 last year, Principal Secretary, H&UDD, Dheeraj Gupta in a meeting of ‘Slaughter House Monitoring Committee’ had asked the Municipal Commissioners of Jammu and Srinagar to get completed the slaughterhouses in both the cities in this financial year only—(KNO)
