Seasonal traders dump unsold hides on roads amid huge losses in Cumilla

A large number of seasonal rawhide traders waited past midnight with their unsold products and many even dumped these on the roads after failing to find prospective clients in different parts of Cumilla on Thursday.

The traders, who collect rawhides from door to door for once every year during Eid-ul-Azha, alleged that their clients, wholesalers and factory owners, had coordinated to keep prices profitable for themselves but unsustainably low for the traders .

On Thursday, the first day of Eid-ul-Azha, authorities were expecting the successful trading of hides from 2.5 lakh sacrificed animals. However, as of 2am past midnight, more than half the collected rawhides remained unaccounted for.

The picture was pretty much the same in all the 17 upazilas of the district and the city corporation areas.

The dire crisis paints a grim picture of the rawhide trading activities across the country on Eid's first day.

As of 9pm, wholesalers, and businessmen were offering Tk300-Tk400 for each hide from  the traders, whereas the traders had bought the hides for Tk500-Tk600.

After 9pm, not even these clients were seen in trading hotspots.

A correspondent from Kaler Kantho personally visited Chhaycoat, Harong, Etbarpur and other prospective trading areas in Chandina upazila of the district, but found the same dismal picture every where.

In Chhaycoat area, a seasonal trader, Jashim Uddin, said he was aimlessly touring wholesale hubs after failing to sale a single rawhide from his collection of 70 pieces.

Another trader, Jamal Hossain, said he left his collection of 30 hides on the roads and went back home around 2am after waiting for hours to get the right customer.

Trader Selim Mia alleged that the syndication of wholesalers and tannery factory owners was keeping prices artifically low.