Nuh clashes hit supply of meat at Gurugram shops

Nuh supplies around 70% of Gurugram's meat, but since the violence erupted, supply chains have been affected

The communal violence that broke out in Nuh earlier this week has affected the availability of meat in Gurugram, shopkeepers and officials said on Thursday.

Traders said that the only shops continuing to get a regular supply of meat source it from the Ghazipur abattoir in Delhi, or from local poultry farms. (ANI)

Clashes broke out in Nuh on Monday over a procession led by Hindu groups in the Muslim-majority district. An attack on the group and retaliatory action over the next two days led to the violence spreading to other parts of Haryana and leaving at least six people dead.

According to traders, Nuh supplies around 70% of Gurugram’s meat, and since the violence broke out, their supply chains have been affected, leading to a depleted stock. They said that the only shops that are continuing to get a regular supply of meat source it from the Ghazipur abattoir in Delhi, or from local poultry farms.

Retailer Sahil Khan said he used to get a weekly supply of meat from Nuh. “After the violence, everyone is locked in their home there. No business or transport is taking place at all. Thus, there is no supply for us. There are several such shops like mine where owners were unable to get stocks through the suppliers from Nuh,” he said.

Ali Afsar, who manages a shop at the Sikanderpur meat market, said that they have very little stock left. “Our livestock supply takes place from Nuh which is completely disrupted after the communal violence that broke out there,” he said, adding that the owner of his shop procures livestock at least twice a week.

“We have shut our other shop in DLF Phase-III due to non-availability of stock. Most of us were living in fear and those from Mewat have already fled after shutting their business,” he said, adding that they may keep the shop closed on Friday in fear of right-wing outfits.

Satyabir Singh Rohilla, public relations officer at the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram, said many shops in the city receive meat from Nuh. “Since the violence hit Nuh, everything came to standstill and there is no supply taking place here, affecting availability. There are approximately 150 licensed meat shops in the city,” he said.

Mohammad Nizam, a wholesale trader at Ghazipur, said their business was already affected due to the month of Sawan, which is likely to conclude at the end of August. “However, the clashes in Haryana have further badly affected the retail and wholesale market traders. In fact, around 15% of retail traders in Delhi also get their supply from Nuh,” he said.

Sushil Sahni, who owns a meat shop in DLF Phase-I, said that their supply chain has not been affected as they procure their stock from Ghazipur. “There is no supply issue from Delhi, but all traders whose supply used to come from Nuh are affected. Several have closed their shops as they are not getting fresh supply,” he said.

Vishwajeet Gujjar, the operations head of a chain of restaurants in Delhi-NCR, said the supply of meat to their Gurugram outlets was unaffected as they use processed meat, which they procure from Noida.

“But standalone restaurants in Gurugram whose supply was from Nuh and neighbouring areas, are suffering,” he said.

Saurabh Sinha, a resident of Vatika City in Sector 49, said almost all the meat and chicken shops in his area were shut for the last two days. “An owner at one shop said they don’t have any supply after the violence in Sohna and Nuh,” he said.

Traders also alleged that members of right-wing outfits visited the market in Sector 56, asking those selling meat or cloud kitchens cooking non-vegetarian food to remain shut on Tuesdays. A staffer at a meat shop, on condition of anonymity, said “We assured them that shops dealing in meat will not open on Tuesday.”