As many as 100-150 ailing or injured animals are being slaughtered every week on meatless days at a makeshift slaughterhouse near the Landhi Abattoir. This is ostensibly being done in connivance with the Veterinary Department officials of City District Government Karachi (CDGK) and the local police.

Meat from these sick and injured animals, which fail to pass the ‘fitness test’ before veterinary doctors on routine days, is stamped by the veterinary officials as “fit for consumption” and is supplied to various city meat markets as well as hotels and caterers on meatless days, The News has learnt.

During a visit to the area near Landhi Abattoir on Monday night, around 10-12 butchers were seen slaughtering cows, buffalos and goats at a makeshift slaughterhouse although it was a meatless day when slaughtering of animals is not supposed to be carried out at the abattoir or any other place in the city.

“These animals had failed to clear fitness test for slaughtering on routine days as they can’t walk before a veterinary doctor. The fitness test is to conduct a parade of animals before the vet, who declares those animals fit and healthy which can walk on foot,” a source in the CDGK Veterinary Department said.

According to him, some 400 to 450 animals including cows, buffalos and goats are slaughtered at Landhi slaughterhouse every night but some of them are spared for either being sick or injured owing to a variety of reasons.

“10-15 animals are daily rejected by the vets for being chronically ill or injured during the fitness test. Once dead, they are worthless for their owners, so they are kept alive till the nights come when no official slaughtering is carried out,” the source revealed.

He said these sick and injured animals were butchered on meatless days when no official of the Veterinary Department was present at the slaughterhouse but disclosed that the entire illegal operation was being run in connivance with the officials concerned.

“Some deputy district officers (DDOs) of the Veterinary Department as well as the Sukhan police officials manning Cattle Colony are patronizing this illegal business and putting the lives of citizens at risk,” the source claimed.

The source, who is a veterinary doctor by profession, said that veterinary hospital also lacks facilities for diagnosis and treatment of animal diseases and instead of taking the ailing animals to the hospital the butchers prefer to slaughter them to protect their investment.

According to him, almost all the parts of these ailing slaughtered animals - liver, heart, kidneys and even intestines - are also cooked which may cause serious health problems to the consumers.

Besides, slaughtering ailing and dying animals is also being carried out in various other areas of the city, including sectors 5-D and 11-E of New Karachi and at an illegal slaughterhouse near Malir cattle market.

“It is an old tradition in Pakistan that instead of letting a sick animal die, they slaughter it in Islamic practice and in such case animal traders hand over such animals to butchers at throwaway prices,” a butcher in Malir told on the condition of anonymity.

He said that several illegal slaughterhouses were operating in the city, especially in New Karachi and Malir, where such animals were slaughtered and stamped by the butchers themselves and then the meat was supplied to the nearby markets.

A visit to meat markets in Laiquatabad, Water Pump in Gulberg Town, New Karachi, Malir and Bin Qasim revealed that meat was available with some selected butchers on meatless days and was being sold without any check and balance.

Chairman Agriculture Committee of the City Council Karachi Arif Bhatti said he was unaware of the illegal practice of slaughtering sick and injured animals anywhere in the city but added everything is possible in this country.

“Yes, I know that meat is being sold on meatless days in the city and whenever the issue comes into our knowledge, we raid the place and seize the illegal meat. But we have limitations and there are other departments, which should also look into such violations,” he informed. He, however, made it clear that CDGK had spent huge money on making the Landhi Abattoir functional and if anything was happening illegal it would be stopped by hook or by crook.

DO Veterinary (CDGK) Dr. Rahman Ali also expressed his ignorance of this illegal practice, saying no such thing had come into his knowledge but assured that his department would look into the complaints and take severe action against the violators, including the officials of his own department.

Efforts were also made to contact the President of Meat Merchants Association Iqbal Qureshi, however, he could not be approached despite repeated attempts.