As the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway remained closed for the third consecutive day on Friday, mutton dealers fret losses because more than 150 livestock trucks are stranded along the road. Several sheep and chicken have died of heat in Udhampur, while the Valley once again witnessed shortage of meat and poultry.
Mehraj-u-Din Ganai, general secretary of All KashmirWholesale Mutton Dealers Association, said the dealers couldn’t simply bringdown sheep from trucks and feed them because “we are not sure of the quality ofthe feed and grass.”
Ganai said that though the traffic authorities had issuedguidelines to ensure smooth movement of trucks, so many stranded vehicles beartestimony that not much has improved.
He estimated a loss of Rs 2-3 lakh per truck of livestockand asked the government to raise mutton prices like the chicken prices werehiked recently.
A senior official said that keeping in mind the lossessuffered by mutton dealers, the government is likely to raise mutton pricesfrom the existing Rs 420 per kg to Rs 440-450 a kilogram. A meeting isscheduled Saturday between the mutton dealers association and officials ofConsumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) department.
“However, the final decision on the mutton price hike willbe taken in a meeting next week to be chaired by Divisional Commissioner whoheads the price fixation committee,” the official said.
Meanwhile, the CAPD department on Friday notified the ratelist for vegetables to be sold across the Valley. Director CAPD Muhammad QasimWani told Greater Kashmir that prices of vegetables, which went up due tofrequent closure of the highway, would come down once local harvest begins inthe next 10-15 days.