Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir administration is setting up hi-tech abattoirs to ensure quality and disease-free mutton for consumers.
Jammu and Kashmir is the largest mutton-consuming union territory in India. Livestock worth Rs 1400 crore is imported from neighboring states every year to meet the mutton demand.
Sheep Husbandry department is mulling setting up 10 hi-tech abattoirs in the union territory, where various examinations would be conducted on the sheep before slaughtering it for sale.
“A new concept has been introduced in Jammu and Kashmir. Private persons can open slaughterhouses. The owners will be incentivized to build their hi-tech slaughterhouses and right now it has been targeted to set up 10 such slaughterhouses in Srinagar and Jammu,” Dr. Rizwan Qureshi, Technical Officer Sheep Husbandry Department told The Kashmir Monitor.
He said the main motive behind setting up these slaughterhouses is to ensure healthy meat to every consumer.
“Food Safety Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued regulations for sheep slaughtering. A sheep can’t be slaughtered in the backyard which is a common practice in Kashmir. It needs to be authenticated that the sheep to be slaughtered is healthy and free from all kinds of diseases,” Qureshi said.
He said the animals will have to undergo examination before and after slaughtering in these modern hi-tech abattoirs.
“Many animals suffer from zoonotic diseases which get easily transferred to humans after consuming their by-products. These diseases include bird flu, TB, brucellosis, and others. So an antemortem will be done to the animals before he is slaughtered and it will be followed by a post-mortem to know whether the meat is safe for humans, ” Qureshi said.
He said the meat will be stamped for its quality and freshness in these slaughterhouses.
Pertinently, Jammu and Kashmir government this year has launched Rs 329.50 crore scheme to boost sheep farming and cut down mutton imports.
Under this project, Dorper, Texel, Finn, Romanov, Boir goat, Swiss alpine goat, and other breeds are being introduced to boost mutton production.
