LAHORE - Lack of awareness, hot weather and electricity loadshedding damage around 25 percent hides and skins of sacrificial animals every year on Eidul Azha, causing an estimated loss of about Rs1.5 billion to both tanneries as well as hide dealers.

This was stated by Pakistan Tanners Association (PTA) Regional Chairman Azam Malik while briefing the Punjab Livestock Secretary Nasim Sadiq during a meeting which was attended by representatives of all leading NGOs and welfare organisations. He appreciated the Punjab Livestock Department secretary for timely arranging meeting with PTA and other stakeholders and dispatching post cards bearing messages for preserving hides and skins on Eid to 25,000 imams of masajid in 36 districts of Punjab. In addition, the department also arranged publication and dispatch of 1.6 million pamphlets to district level formations of all NGOs, welfare organisations/educational and health care institutions in Punjab.

The PTA regional chairman said that apart from direct loss of around Rs1.5 billion due to animals skin damage, the country might suffer additional loss of over $400 million foreign exchange if an extensive and widespread awareness drive is not launched for preservation of hides and skins.

Malik observed that Pakistan is one of the biggest markets of the raw hides and skins in Asia and about 30-40 percent of the total produce is generated only on the occasion of Eid. He said that Eidul Azha has great importance for rural economy, as tanning industry purchases about 30-40 percent of its raw material during Eid.

For the last many years, tanneries have been supplied very limited gas, besides power suspension of long time in Punjab, asking the government to exempt the tanning industry from gas and power loadshedding at least during the hot and humid climate, he said. This is necessary for processing hides before getting putrefaction which entirely damages the raw hides. The skins, being a perishable item, cannot be stored without processing which requires uninterrupted supply of electricity and gas, he added.

Malik pointed out that hides are basic raw material for leather industry to make leather garments, bags, footwear, ballets and gloves. All these goods are exported that generates substantial amount of foreign exchange. He was of the view that hides are generally damaged due to hiring of unprofessional butchers. Moreover, a big percentage of the hides are wasted because of lacking appropriate knowledge of their preservation. The PTA regional chairman pointed out that if the charity and welfare organisations had taken due care in slaughtering of sacrificial animals, used proper salting immediately after collection of hides and skins as well as made quick delivery to the buying houses the leather industry would transform them into finished leather qualitatively mostly for export.

He recalled that PTA, last year, had also signed an MoU with University of Veterinary & Animal Sciences and European Union’s Pakistan Leather Competitive Improvement Programme for "Hides & Skins Preservation". He informed that under the agreement, PTA arranged a number of seminars in Lahore and Karachi with collaboration of UVAS and PLCIP in view of raising awareness amongst hides and skins collectors on “how to preserve precious stock of hides and skins”.