Business Strategy in Kurbanir Haat

Prepared by:

Name: Asif Sadat

ID: 1815274060

Prepared for:

Dr. Muslima Zahan

Course Title: Strategic Management

Course Code: Bus690

Sec: 03

School of Business
North South University

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Eid al-Adha or Eid Qurban, also called the "Festival of the Sacrifice", is the second of two
Islamic holidays celebrated worldwide each year, and considered the holier of the two. It honors
the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God's command. It is also
widely celebrated in Bangladesh too. People sacrificing sheeps, goats, and cows, and donating a
third of the meat go to underprivileged and poor. Because of Global pandemic, 2020 Eid al-Adha
has come up with lot of difficulties and challenges for Kurbanir Haat.

1. Livestock supply for Kurbanir Haat in 2020:

The government will take an initiative to ensure smooth management of sacrificial animals,
reared by commercial and marginal farmers across the country, ahead of Eid-ul-Azha amid the
Covid-19 pandemic. Department of Livestock Services (DLS) will also take measures to ensure
health guidelines at each cattle market by forming medical teams. Like past several years,
sacrificial animals are in surplus in the country this year too thanks to commercial and marginal
farmers. This year 11.90 million cattle are available for sacrifice against the total demand for
11.20 million, according to DLS. Some 11.78 million cattle were available for sacrifice last year
against the total demand for 11.20 million, the DLS statistics showed. A total of 4538,000 cows
and buffaloes, 7,355,000 sheep and goats and 4,500 other animals like camel and 'dumba' are set
to be sacrificed during this Eid. Under the government's cow-fattening programme, these animals
have been reared at 577,416 farms, according to official statistics. In addition, many households
raise cows, sheep and goats, keeping the second largest religious festival of the Muslims in mind.
As many as 11,588,923 cows, sheep and goats were available in 2018 while 11,557,000 in 2017,
according to the official data. Of them, some 10.50 million were slaughtered during last Eid-ul-
Azha.

2. Contribution of the Livestock Sector to GDP:

The cattle, sheep and goat population increased to 55.52 million in FY '19 from 49.55 million in
FY '09, according to DLS. The total livestock population (both ruminant and non-ruminant)
reached about 402.56 million in FY '19. The share of livestock in the agriculture sector's gross
domestic product (GDP) stood at 13.46 per cent in FY 2019. The size of the livestock economy
was estimated at Tk 432.12 billion, according to the DLS, with its contribution to the GDP
estimated at 1.47 per cent. The livestock is now creating jobs for 20 per cent of the total
population directly and 50 per cent indirectly, the data available with the DLS show. A total of
70,981 cattle farms was registered with DLS until August 2019. Of them, about 59,274 were
dairies, 4,201 goat-rearing farms and 3,753 sheep farms.

3. Livestock trade and margin during Kurbani:

Prior to this time, the vast majority of cattle imported from India were through informal channels
due to economic benefits of creating a formal market were overruled by religious, political, and
humanitarian issues. According to a 2014 study by Bhattacharjee (2014), the value of a cattle
sourced from an Indian state during the time of being sold in the Bangladesh retail market could
increase by at least 7 times. Traders in the downstream side of the supply chain in Bangladesh

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could receive as high as 77% margins, depending on a variety of factors including supply,
seasonality in demand, logistics and miscellaneous expenses.

4. How Indian Cows Were Entering Bangladesh:

Indian cows entered Bangladesh through different borders as ‘unclaimed’ animals. The cows
enter Bangladesh through some corridors at the India-Bangladesh border near Rajshahi, Jessore,
Khulna, Sylhet and Chittagong from various Indian states. Customs seize the cows as they enter
the country without owners then as per customs formality, they auction them off.

5. No sacrificial animal import this year:

Fisheries and Livestock Minister SM Rezaul Karim said the government won’t allow import of
sacrificial animals on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha. The minister noted that the government will
take all necessary measures to ensure the animal sacrifice in a healthy manner. He cautioned all
to abide by health guidelines at cattle markets and urged to discharge own duties with
responsibility and ethics.

6. Govt. launches digital market for sacrificial animals:

The government has launched a digital haat, believed to be the biggest platform of such, for
selling and buying sacrificial animals ahead of the coming Eid-ul Azha by maintaining social
distancing. The government is going to promote these registered animals through its websites
and social networking sites at its own cost, giving a better chance for the seller to reach their
customers easily. The sellers and buyers both can do the trade sitting in their homes during this
corona crisis, giving them protection from getting infected by going outside. According to the
ICT Division, buyers after selecting their animal from the site, will contact the sellers and can
pick up the animal or take home delivery by paying its owner. Registration process has already
started for the sellers at the site.

7. Concerns Regarding Cow Fattening:

The reduction in the number of cows from India has also resulted in local farmers using steroids
to fatten cows. However, the inexperience of the farmers in using these techniques has raised
concern regarding the health of the cows they are selling. It has been alleged that many cattle
farmers are using excessive steroids to fatten their cows to increase weight to sell them at higher
prices.

8. Entrepreneurs prefer online sale:

Entrepreneurs are set to use online marketplaces to put on sale sacrificial animals as uncertainty
looms over the makeshift cattle markets due to the COVID-19 outbreak. A number of
entrepreneurs said that they were preferred e-commerce platforms like Daraz, Evaly and Bikroy
and other social media marketing strategies to reach their customers. They are also set to offer
discounts and other benefits for the online customers during this new viral scourge as visiting the
actual market places became risky for both buyers and sellers.

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 9. Mobile market of Kurbani Haat:

During the shutdown in last three months, commercial and marginal farmers transacted Tk 26
billion through mobile marketing management across the country. The mobile marketing
management will continue to benefit the farmers.

10. Booking for ‘Full Qurbani Service’ on the rise:

The trend of online booking for qurbani-related services provided by professionals at their own
facility – known as "Full Qurbani Service" – is rising across the country ahead of Eid-ul-Adha.
Though it is a relatively lesser known sector in Bangladesh, several companies have been
offering such hassle-free service related to religious sacrifice to their customers for years. When
booked online ahead of Eid, a service provider will slaughter sacrificial animals and process and
package the meat at their slaughterhouse and conveniently deliver the meat to the customer's
home. The service has been getting a good response from city dwellers this year due to the
obligations of social distancing measures and the possible unavailability of butchers amid the
deadly Covid-19 pandemic. Bengal Meat, an outlet that pioneered the "Full Qurbani Service" in
Bangladesh, is also selling cattle on its online qurbani haat. Another venture named Madol, an e-
commerce company operating on Facebook, is a newcomer to this particular business.
Sheba.xyz, a venture that used to supply butchers to customers, has also launched its "Full
Qurbani Service" this year. Though it is a relatively new concept in Bangladesh, many countries
across the world have been using this form of service for years. The Pakistan-based "Meat One"
is the largest venture in this sector globally and is most popular in Middle Eastern countries.

11. Bangladesh Railway to transport sacrificial animals for Eid-ul-Azha:

Cattle traders can easily transport sacrificial animals in cargo train wagons. We have set a charge
of approximately Tk34,000 for each wagon to bring cattle to Dhaka and Chittagong from
different parts of the country. Each wagon can hold 16 or more heads of cattle. So each animal
would cost only Tk2,000 or less for transportation which is the lowest compared to other modes
of transport. The highest cost of carrying a cow has been fixed at Tk 1,232 on Gaibandha-
Chattogram route while the lowest cost of carrying a cow has been fixed at Tk 488 on
Melandaha-Dhaka route.

12. Govt to employ 1200 teams to monitor sacrificial animals’ health:

The government has taken an initiative to deploy a total of 1,200 veterinary medical teams at the
cattle markets across the country to ensure healthy and disease-free sacrificial animals for the
consumers during the upcoming Eid-ul Azha.
In conclusion, although all the preparation is underway for Kurbani Haat this year. The threat of
COVID-19 is still looming. There is deep concern among sellers of negative impact of demand
due to less economic activities & widespread fear.

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Reference:
1. Md Foisal Ahmed
In-Text: Md Foisal Ahmed (2020)
Your Bibliography: Md Foisal Ahmed (2020), Booking for ‘Full Qurbani Service’ on the
rise [online].
Available at: https://tbsnews.net [Accessed 20 July, 2020].

2. Staff correspondent
In-Text: Staff correspondent (2020)
Your Bibliography: Staff correspondent (2020), Railway fixes cost of carrying sacrificial
animals [online].
Available at: https://www.newagebd.net [Accessed 20 July, 2020]

3. Sajibur Rahman
In-Text: Sajibur Rahman (2020)
Your Bibliography: Sajibur Rahman (2020), Sacrificial animals in surplus this year
[online].
Available at: https://thefinancialexpress.com.bd [Accessed 20 July, 2020]

4. Tribune Desk
In-Text: Tribune Desk (2020)
Your Bibliography: Tribune Desk (2020), Govt launches digital market for sacrificial
animals [online].
Available at: https://www.dhakatribune.com [Accessed 20 July, 2020]

5. Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (2020)

In-Text: Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (2020)
Your Bibliography: Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (2020), DCCI seeks strong monitoring
on health safety in cattle market [online].
Available at: https://www.newagebd.net [Accessed 20 July, 2020]

6. ICE Business Time Desk (2020)

In-Text: ICE Business Time Desk (2020)
Your Bibliography: ICE Business Time Desk (2020), How the ban on informal import of
cattle from India can boost investment in the local market [online].
Available at: https://ibtbd.net [Accessed 20 July, 2020]

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