BM Desk : The price at which salt-cured rawhides are sold is established by the government, according to Commerce Advisor Sheikh Bashir Uddin.
“All of our deputy commissioners (DCs) are working, and we have constructed a control room at the national level where hide monitoring is continuous throughout the day,” he stated on Sunday night while touring the sacrificial cowhide market in Posta, Old Dhaka. We have found that salt-cured rawhides are typically offered for sale at prices set by the government.
According to a media 7 article, the wholesalers perform the initial preservation and add salt before selling the animal skins to tanneries. According to numerous seasonal traders, they are devastated by this year’s stark pricing disparity between salt-cured and unsalted animal skins.
Reports from Chattogram reveal that a significant number of rawhides was discarded on the streets due to not achieving a “reasonable price”. Bashir Uddin asserted that both social media and some mainstream media outlets are disseminating “misinformation” suggesting that the hides have decayed. “We investigated such claims, and I personally spoke with the divisional head of Chattogram, discovering that one trader delivered 620 rawhides to Regenia. “These were partially rotten and unsuitable for preservation. Who would purchase those rawhides? Utilizing such rawhides to fuel a smear campaign, in collusion with a few dishonest traders, is merely an attempt to destabilize the leather market once more.
” The government has increased the fixed price for buying sacrificial animal skins this year by Tk 05 for cowhide and Tk 02 for goatskin compared to last year. This year, tanners in the capital can acquire salt-cured cowhide at Tk 60-65 per sqft, up from last year’s Tk 55-60. Outside Dhaka, the price for salt-cured cowhide is set at Tk 55-60 per sqft, compared to last year’s Tk 50-55. The commerce advisor stated, “Firstly, the prices we established for rawhides included salt.
Secondly, the skins are being sold for Tk 700–800 each, which is higher than in many previous years. “However, some seasonal traders lack experience with rawhides and have rendered them partially rotten. Anticipating Tk 700–800 for half-rotten skins is excessively high.” He noted that quality hides are already being sold for Tk 1,200–1,300. “We are optimistic that our initiative to promote local salting and storage has made the rawhides suitable for preservation and storage, resulting in stability in market management and a balance between demand and supply.” Bashir Uddin added, “You should know that the government generously supplied salt. However, if all responsibility is placed on the government while you neglect your duties, then it is unreasonable to have such expectations.
