Even as the Municipal Corporation of Delhi decided to go ahead with its plan of shutting down the Eidgah slaughterhouse on October 22,the Halal Meat Association said that they will not move to the Ghazipur abattoir the alternate space allotted by the government. The association had earlier put in a plea to defer the move till Id-ul-Zuha,which was rejected by the MCD. The traders now say they will continue to slaughter the animals illegally,like the Jhatka Association. The MCD had initially claimed that Eidgah slaughterhouse is unhygienic,where slaughtering takes place in an unhealthy manner. Supreme Court had then directed the MCD to make an alternative slaughterhouse keeping in view the future needs of Delhi. The Ghazipur abattoir,constructed after the apex court direction,is near the Delhi-UP border in East Delhi. The abattoir stands next to a 90-feet high and 45 lakh tonne garbage mass. The road leading to the abattoir is littered with dead rats,feathers and bird droppings as several scavenger birds hover above the area. The MCD has,meanwhile,outsourced the Ghazipur abattoir to an international meat exports company,Allanasons,for a monthly rent of Rs 50 lakh for 10 years. They have new machinery and it is more hygienic,so meat associations should have no problem with the move. The garbage will be slowly taken care of and meat merchants will have to do with it (the facility) as we are only following Supreme Court orders, said Deep Mathur,spokesperson,MCD The Jhatka section in Eidgah has already been closed down. Around 50 animals are slaughtered at Ghazipur. We slaughter around 1,000 animals everyday illegally because we cant go to Ghazipur, said Kishen Lal,president,Jhatka Association. Why meat associations refused to move to Ghazipur* Location: Traders and butchers from West Delhi found the daily transportation expensive.* Unhygienic: Associations say the stench from garbage dump is unbearable. The Ghazipur slaughterhouse has not got the No-Objection Certificate from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee and also lacks sanitation facilities, said Furqan Quraishi,president,Delhi Slaughter House Workers Welfare Association.* Size: MCD in its affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court accepted that the daily demand for meat in Delhi is around 10,000 animals. The Ghazipur abattoir has a capacity to slaughter only 3,000. Where do we slaughter the rest of 7,000 animals, asked Mohmmad Adil Quereshi,president,Delhi Meat Merchants Association. * Employment: Associations say meat merchants cannot enter the abattoir have to hand over their cattle and livestock to the butchers hired by the abattoir,who would slaughter them and return the meat. The merchants claim more than 3,000 people will become unemployed.* Charges: The cost is higher,for example slaughtering charge for a sheep has gone up from Rs 20 to Rs 45.
