THOOTHUKUDI: Ahead of Ramadan, goat and sheep rearers of the district have been left in the lurch as the livestock trade for meat dipped following a poor trader turnout at the Ettayapuram shandy in Thoothukudi on Saturday, with many traders blaming the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) for their misery.
With the MCC in effect due to the ensuing Lok Sabha poll, one cannot carry more than Rs 50,000 cash (without supporting documents) and this has adversely impacted the livestock business, complained the traders.
The Ettayapuram weekly shandy, which meets on every Saturday, is one of the biggest livestock markets in the southern districts of the state. Traders from across Tamil Nadu come to the shandy to buy goats and sheep for meat shops. While trade usually exceeds Rs 6 crore during festival seasons such as Deepavali, Pongal, Christmas, Bakrid and Ramadan, among others, it has fallen to Rs 1 crore owing to the poll code restrictions.
On Saturday, despite goat and sheep rearers bringing large flocks to the shandy in view of the Ramadan festivities that fall on April 11, the trader turnout was very low owing to the poll code in effect, sources said. “Only very few traders hailing from the local areas of Tirunelveli came to the shandy, while many others from Madurai, Pudukottai, Coimbatore did not participate,”
Karupasamy, a rearer, rued. Another trader alleged that the market was impacted due to the implementation of MCC as it also prevented traders from taking part in the bids. “When we carry cash, officers of the flying squads and static surveillance teams demand the money’s source or bills. How can a trader show bills for buying livestock,” he asked. It may be noted that the flying squad officials had seized money from some traders here last week, causing panic among the rest of them.
Condemning the strict implementation of MCC, traders’ association leader Kamaraj said, “The Election Commission of India must permit traders to carry at least Rs 2 lakh cash with them, as the current permissible amount of Rs 50,000 is not enough to suffice the purchase needs of petty shopkeepers.”