Sarvjeet Singh
Kathua, DD, Kashmir is bracing for a mutton crisis in coming days after a prominent association of mutton dealers called for a general strike on Friday against the alleged extortion by authorities in Punjab.
The strike has been announced by the All Kashmir Wholesale Mutton Dealers Union (AKWMDU) against the alleged extortion at Madhopur check-post in Punjab on J&K border where trucks carrying livestock such as sheep and goats are being charged between ₹15, 000 to ₹20,000 per vehicle.
The AKWMDU General Secretary Mehraj-ud-Din Ganai said that the charge was being collected under the pretext of ‘livestock market slip’ issued by the authorities of the neighbouring state which has forced them to announce the strike.
According to one estimate, Jammu and Kashmir consumes about 15 lakh sheep annually of which about 41 percent are imported from other parts of the country and the strike is expected to impact the mutton supply in the Kashmir Valley.
Officials said that if the strike continued for extended period, the valley may face a severe shortage of mutton which could lead to a sharp rise in prices and inconvenience for the public.
A member of AKWMDU said that two of their trucks went missing in Punjab recently following which an FIR was registered at Ludhiana police station, “Although the drivers and trucks were released, but the where about of the livestock is not known and no one explains us about the huge loss,” he told The Diplomat Digital.
A receipt shared by a driver, who ferries livestock to J&K from Rajasthan and other states, shows that the charge is being collected under section 20 of The Punjab Cattle Fairs (Regulation) Act, 1967. The act deals with provisions for holding, controlling, managing or regulating cattle fairs in Punjab.
AKWMDU General Secretary pointed out that the dealers were transporting the livestock in question directly to Jammu and Kashmir from Rajasthan, Haryana, and Delhi with no financial dealings taking place in Punjab.
He described the measures as “extortion” while urging the Omar Abdullah led Jammu and Kashmir government to intervene in the matter.
The driver, who wished to stay anonymous, said that all the livestock vehicles are stopped at Madhopur by some people and the Punjab Police remains mute spectators while silently siding with these “illegal tax collector in Punjab’s Madhopur.”
“When we do not give money, the police comes into scene and warn us to either pay up or prepare to go to jail under animal protection laws. We have no option,” he said.
AKWMDU has urged the Abdullah government to take up the matter with his counterpart in Punjab and find a resolution of the issue. The union has warned that the strike and protests will continue until the illegal extortion is stopped.
