LAHORE:
With Eidul Azha around the corner, complaints of overcharging and extortion in Lahore’s cattle markets have risen, with citizens and cattle traders saying they have been left to contractors who operate with impunity.
From Shahpur Kanjran – Punjab’s largest permanent cattle market – to temporary selling points set up across the city, buyers and traders claim illegal charges have reached unprecedented levels, adding to the financial burden on families already struggling with inflation and skyrocketing animal prices.
Citizens visiting the designated markets say the Punjab government’s ban on the sale of animals along inner-city roads has effectively forced buyers into controlled cattle markets, where they claim contractors and their agents extract money without fear of accountability.
According to buyers and traders, visitors who leave the markets after buying sacrificial animals are allegedly forced to pay unofficial fees ranging from Rs500 to Rs700 for goats and sheep, Rs1,000 to Rs1,200 for bulls and buffaloes and up to Rs2,000 for camels.
Several residents alleged that groups of men stationed at market exits stop loaders and even private vehicles carrying sacrificial animals and demand cash before allowing them to leave the markets.
“We came to this market only because the government banned the sale of sacrificial animals inside the city,” said Muhammad Faizan at the Shahpur Kanjran market.
“After spending huge amount on animals, we are being ripped off again while leaving the market. No official is available to address public complaints,” he added.
Another resident accused the authorities of turning a blind eye to the situation. “It feels like the government has awarded contracts to these people to fleece citizens,” said Ahmad Raza, a citizen leaving the Saggian Cattle Market after buying an animal. “In the past, traders and farmers who brought animals to the markets were heavily targeted. Now ordinary citizens are also being looted. Such open extortion cannot happen without the complicity of officials.”
On the other hand, the district administration and provincial authorities have intensified efforts against the illegal sale of cattle along the road and citizens keeping sacrificial animals outside their homes.
As officials continued a crackdown across Lahore, residents complained that enforcement teams are targeting ordinary families instead of addressing overpricing in the official cattle markets.
Livestock traders also raised concerns over high charges at the markets, saying unofficial payments increase operating costs.
Traders claimed that despite officially sanctioned entry fees of Rs200 for small and Rs500 for large animals, many sellers are being charged higher amounts.
Additional payments are also allegedly charged for fodder, straw and animal feed.
“The animals were already expensive due to rising transport and feed costs,” said a trader from south Punjab. “These illegal charges have pushed prices even higher for the public.”
