Gore on road as BMC abattoir lies unused

Bhubaneswar: Streetside meat sellers in the City are virtually cocking a snook at the Supreme Court’s suggestion to regulate slaughter of animals in the open, by continuing with the practice despite the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) having opened an abattoir at Gadakana and two meat markets at Ghatikia and Unit 4 respectively.
The apex court in 2017 had suggested controlling open butchering and asked the local administration to make conscious efforts to stop such practices.
Following the suggestion, the BMC constructed an abattoir at Gadakana and set up two markets at Ghatikia and Unit 4. However, the meat vendors’ lack of interest and BMC’s poor enforcement meant that for all practical purposes, the slaughter house is yet to see the light of the day and stray dogs are the only animals that freely visit its premises.
“We spent about Rs 1.67 crore on the construction of the markets and the abattoir and will select an agency to operate the slaughterhouse,” said BMC Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena.
“We started this project to control the unhygienic and unsafe meat-selling practices across the city. However, despite our best efforts the meat vendors are still reluctant to have their supplies from a slaughterhouse,” he added.
Explaining about his skepticism,’ Irfan Mohammad, a meat vendor at Unit 4, said that besides the customer’s demand for fresh meat the transit cost to the abattoir overburdens his business.
“Customers usually take the meat that is minced in front of them. Even if somehow I manage to convince them on the freshness bit, the cost of transport over about 30 kms has to be borne by me,” Irfan said.
However, with the city’s growing demand for meat street vendors are posing insidious health challenges. “The butchering is largely done beside drains or other unhygienic places for easy disposal of the animal’s blood or its unwanted parts. This leads to fetid smell and invites serious diseases that can even be fatal,” said a BMC official.
Acknowledging the fact that meat sellers need to maintain more cleanliness, Sampur Mohanty, a customer, added, “They should maintain better hygiene if they are unwilling to get their supplies from the abattoir or the two markets as otherwise we will be the ones paying the price ultimately.”