ISLAMABAD  – With Eid-ul-Azha just a week away, sale of slaughtering and cooking instruments is witnessing unprecedented surge in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
As only five-days left in Eid-ul-Azha, a number of stalls are being established in different markets and localities for sale of instruments used for slaughtering, cutting and cooking meat like knives, meat cleavers, Bar-B-Q instruments including Angeethi (hand-made-oven) and steel bars. In fulfillment of `Sunnat-Ibrahimi, Eid-ul-Azha will be celebrated on October 27 and sacrificing animals on the 10th, 11th and 12th Zilhaj.
As the Eid approached the street vendors are witnessed to roam around on bicycles to sell the variety of slaughter instruments and also offering their services to sharpen the rusted slaughter equipment.
Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha has special significance for the Muslims but the requirements to celebrate both occasions are quite different from each other. A stallholder Usman Ali talking to APP said that these were exceptional days for us and they can do sufficient business, much more than other times throughout the year, adding that during first two days of Eid butchers’s demands would be high that’s why a large number of people prefer to sacrifice animals themselves to avoid inconvenience.
Another stallholder said that business to sharpen rusted tools is yet to get momentum as Eid were five days away, adding most people get their old knives and choppers sharpened.  A shopper told that street vendors and stallholders charging double price of butchery equipment, adding to hold the services of butchers was another difficult task.
Purana Qila and Banni areas in Rawalpindi are considered as main markets for butchery instruments where such tools are easily available at wholesale rate.
Meanwhile, sky rocketing prices of sacrificial animals are forcing the citizens to opt for “Ijtamai Qurbani” which is becoming popular as slaughtering an animals is a religious duty and desire of every Muslim but high prices are the main hurdle to it particularly in this era of financial constraint. With Eid-ul-Azha fast approaching, the numbers of sacrificial animals are increasing in the temporary cattle-markets of the town.
The prices of animals have almost increased by 100 percent as compared to last year. Vendors say that the price hike is the result of the rising inflation, increased transportation charges and other associated expenses. A survey conducted by APP revealed that the prices of sacrificial animals have risen sharply as eid-ul-azha is about one week away.