Faisal Shabir
Srinagar: Abdul Rehman Malla patiently waits for customers at his shop at Parimpora in outskirts of Srinagar. He sells camels and expects good sales ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha festival this year.
Malla told INS that for the past two decades, he has been importing camels from outside, mainly from Rajasthan. “Over these years, I have been selling camels to my customers who come from different parts of the Valley,” Malla said.
Malla, a sexagenarian who claims to be in cattle business from last more than three decades, said that he decided to import camels and sell them on the occasion of Eid-ul- Azha in keeping with the tradition of the Prophet Mohammad who mostly used to sacrifice camels on this holy occasion.
According to Islamic belief at least seven persons can sacrifice a single camel on Eid-ul- Azha.
“Mostly people here prefer sheep and goats in the Valley on the holy occasion but there is a considerable demand for big animals as well. Keeping this thing in mind, I thought of introducing camels here and thankfully I make good sales during the festival,” he added.
Malla imports a few camels as his market is limited and he “there is no point taking a risk.” “There is always a risk that I might end up selling not a single camel and to be on safer side, I prefer to import a handful of camels,” he said adding, “There are few selected customers who buy them because of the cost considerations and ease of maintenance.”
Malla said that it takes him at least two months to set a deal with traders in Rajasthan to import camels. Apart from Eid-ul-Azha, Malla also sells camel meat to his regular customers once in a year. “Many of my customers who came from far off places requested me specifically for the camel meat and to fulfil their demand, I get a small camel for them,” he said.
Malla has eight trained men in camel slaughtering. “In the beginning, we faced difficulties because the slaughtering process is different. We charge around 15000 rupees from the people,” he said.
