Terrified meat exporters want to abandon UP, Sena shuts chicken shops too

The new regime, led by Yogi Adityanath has cast a spell of panic on the meat exporters in UP

For Uttar Pradesh abattoirs the biggest dread these days is - an official carrying locks and seals. Meat exporters of the state, who cater to over 50 countries across the globe are living in fear of being stigmatised for the nature of their trade. 

The new regime, led by Yogi Adityanath has cast a spell of panic by its statewide crackdown on illegal slaughterhouses and mechanised abattoirs.

Speaking to The Times of India, All India Meat and Livestock Exporters Association (AIMLEA) secretary Fauzan Alavi, said, "Suddenly we are being made to feel that we are not doing business, but committing crime".

India is one of the largest meat producers with UP accounting for 60% of the trade worth Rs 50,000 crore. However, owing to recent events the state's production has come down by 30-40 per cent. While the State and Central government has clarified that it is only acting against illegal abattoirs, gloom has settled in the entire industry.

"Taking a signal from the top, lower-rung officers are knocking at our doors with a threat to close down business. Within four days of government formation, four licensed slaughterhouses – all 100% export units – have been closed in UP," Alavi told TOI.

Inspection officers and their flimsy reasons for bullying:

Fauzan Alavi said that authorities checking these slaughterhouses ordered their closure on such flimsy reasons. For instance:  Non-functional CCTV camera, slight variation in building plan and so on.

Alavi further alleged that office-bearers of AIMLEA from Mumbai and Delhi are camping in Lucknow for the past week in vain. Accordingly, only Yogi Adityanath can take a final call or discuss the issue, but his personal aides refuse to get them in touch with the chief minister. 

AIMLEA threaten to shift base

Instead of challenging the State, AIMLEA exporters are threatening to abandon the Uttar Pradesh. Alavi claimed that some other states have approached them and they are willing to shift their base to those states.

However, here too meat exporters have limited choices. Right after UP decided to get rid of illegal slaughterhouses, Jharkhand, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh followed suit.

All these states are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). According to Times Now, three meat shops were sealed in Haridwar, 11 were shut in Raipur and one in Indore.

Is Yogi Adityanath's move hitting the right target?

The high-pitched crackdown has found support of Hindu right-wing groups, however, interestingly, Hindus outnumber Muslim in this industry. Statistics show that only 25 per cent of the workforce in the industry is Muslim. Most of the Hindus employed are OBCs. About 50 per cent employees are women.

This huge industry provides employment to nearly 25 lakh people, who are now either unemployed or living in the fear of being ostracised for their means of being their family's bread winner.

Meanwhile, several media reports said Shiv Sena activists shut down more than 500 meat and chicken shops and hotels across Gurgaon and Delhi on Tuesday on account of Navratri. The police, however, claimed that they hadn’t received any complaints from shop owners regarding this.

Shiv Sena Gurugam district secretary Rohtas Yadav told The Hindu that the party activists formed separate teams and shut down meat and chicken shops in old city areas including Palam Vihar, Rajendra Park, Feroze Gandhi Colony, Sector 9, Sector 12 and Sector 14.