Traders struggle as terror attack casts shadow over Eid shopping

Shadow of the Pahalgam terror attack loomed over Eid-ul-Azha shopping in different parts of Kashmir, including Srinagar, with sales of sacrificial animals remaining sluggish so far.

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Most people here link the sluggish trade to the Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 people on April 22, saying people now want to hold on to their cash.

The deadly terror attack with cross-border links triggered a military response by India, which targeted multiple terror hideouts in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir under Operation Sindoor.

“Only last month, India and Pakistan almost went to war. In such a scenario, people are avoiding spending unnecessarily, leading to lesser economic activities over the past one-and-a-half months," Jamal Ahmad, a local businessman, said.

Livestock dealers from across Jammu and Kashmir have descended on Srinagar, the summer capital of the Union Territory, in the hope of selling the sacrificial animals even as they find fewer takers.

"The business has been on the slower side ever since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic. However, the sales this year are simply the lowest," Mohammad Asim, a goat trader from Samba district, said at the makeshift livestock market in Tengpora.

Asim, who said he has been coming to Srinagar with his flock for the past 15 years, said the business was never so bad.

"With less than three days to go for Eid, we would usually be planning our trip back home. Even last year, the sales were not very good but we still managed to sell more than half the livestock by this time,” he said.

Mohammad Akhtar, a Bakerwal from Poonch, said he might have to take some of his animals back to his village if the sales do not improve.

“I have slashed the rates by Rs 50 per kg in the hope of doing some business. Last year, I sold sheep for Rs 380 per kg, but this year the customers are bargaining even at Rs 350 per kg,” Akhtar said.

Srinagar's largest sacrificial animal market in the Eidgah area as well as at other places also witnessed low-key business activity, even as a variety of non-local sheep breeds have flooded the Valley.

Several non-local breeds such as Kajuwala, Jaisalmeri and Marwari have been imported to the Valley from other states of the country. Other animals like camels and buffaloes are also there, but there has been a slump in their sales too, the traders said.

The hustle and bustle associated with Eid shopping is missing in other sectors as well, especially the shops dealing with bakeries, confectioneries, readymade garments and crockery, which used to witness a heavy rush of customers before Eid.

Eid-ul-Azha will be celebrated on Saturday, commemorating the tradition of Prophet Abraham.