Strike lessens chicken consumption by 33% in Katmandu

作者: Xinhua News Agency on 21 May , 2012.
类别: All, News, Society

: Protesters gather after the motorcycle of a journalist is torched during a general strike called by Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities in Katmandu, Nepal, Sunday, May 20, 2012. The group had called for businesses to close and vehicles to stay off the streets to support their demand that states proposed in the new constitution be marked on the basis of ethnic groups. (Photo=AP/NEWSis)

KATMANDU, May 21 (Xinhua) — Consumption of chicken in Nepali capital Katmandu Valley has come down as banda (strike) affected normal lives of people and strike enforcers forced restaurants and hotels – major consumers of chicken — to shut down.

Daily consumption of chicken in the capital hovers around 250, 000kg. According to Jung Bahadur GC, president of the National Chicken Sellers Association (NCSA), daily consumption has come down by as much as 33 percent due to strike.

“Demand from major markets has slowed due to banda and other forms of strikes called by various groups over the past few days,” GC was quoted by Monday’s Republica daily as saying, adding, “If the situation remained the same for coming few days, farmers will have no option but to dump their chicken ready for market.” GC also said chicken sales also dropped due to drop in daily wage earners? income owing to strikes.

According to the association, hotel and restaurants consume 40 percent of total chicken sales in the capital.

“Drop in sales has directly affected poultry farmers. They have already started dumping chicks due to shortage of feed,” GC said, adding that series of strike over the past week has disrupted transportation of feed and other inputs. “We can?t store feed in warehouse for more than 15 days,” GC said. “Many poultry farmers have expressed worries about shortage of feed in their farms.”

Price of chicken, however, has increased despite decline in consumption. Last week, poultry entrepreneurs raised chicken price by 8.3 percent to 260 Nepali rupees (about 3 U.S. dollars) per kg.

As the deadline – May 27 -of the constitution drafting draws near in Nepal, various groups are demanding their representation in the new constitution of which more focus is laid on the ” autonomous regions” based on ethnicity and identity.

Sunday’s strike has been called by Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities demanding the formation of federal states in the upcoming constitution based on ethnicity. The strike is expected to continue for two more days.

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