Meat stalls in Udhagamandalam have been closed for the last two days following orders by the district administration, who took the step due to overcrowding at the meat stalls set up near the Ooty Race Course.
Local residents said that the meat stalls were reopened in Udhagamandalam on Saturday, with the shops being allowed to function at the Ooty Race Course. Hundreds of people began queuing at the stalls due to the Easter weekend. However, noticing the long queues at the Race Course, the Udhagamandalam Municipality and the district administration ordered that the stalls be closed on Saturday.
Similarly long queues on Sunday led to the premature closure of the meat stalls, which continued till Monday.
Visitors to the market hoping to purchase meat and poultry were turned away empty-handed. C. Rajan, a resident of Fern Hill in Udhagamandalam, said that he had been coming to the market for the last three days to purchase meat. “I have spoken to friends and family in other districts who said that meat shops in their cities are functioning, so I am not really sure as to the reasons why the shops here are closed,” he said.
Merchants from the municipal market and meat stall owners said that problems arose on Saturday due to the unexpected demand for beef. “As mutton is very expensive, and people were wary of purchasing chicken due to reports of bird flu in neighbouring districts, there was a surge in demand for beef at the few stalls which were opened on Saturday. This led to the municipality deciding that the meat stalls in general were leading to large groups of people congregating at a particular place,” said a merchant from the Udhagamandalam market.
The Ooty Municipal Market Merchants’ Association is in discussions with the district administration to allow for fish, poultry and mutton stalls to begin operating once again from Tuesday. “As beef seems to be in high demand, we are trying to work out a system where beef can be delivered directly to people’s homes,” said a merchant who is part of the association.