Public commercial banks (PCB) have increased the amount of loan this year to help traders purchase rawhides of sacrificial animals during Eid-ul-Azha.
The four PCBs sanctioned Tk 300 crore loan for facilitating the tanners' rawhide purchase this year compared with last year's Taka 240 crore.
Bangladesh Tannery Association sources said tannery operators got Tk 60 crore in loans from Sonali Bank, Tk 150 crore from Janata Bank, Tk 76 crore from Agrani Bank and Tk 25 crore from Rupali Bank.
Besides, some private banks also are offering small scale loans to the tanners on the occasion.
Tannery traders expected that nearly 55 lakh pieces of rawhide of sacrificial animals would be collected during the Eid ul Azha this year, which means nine lakh more pieces of rawhide will be collected this festival season compared to last year, Shahin Ahmed, president of Bangladesh Tannery Association, told the news agency.
Ahmed hoped the number of sacrificial animals will be more this Eid and the rawhide trade will be totalling around Tk 3,000 crore, up from Tk 2,500 crore last year.
According to the tannery association statistics, the tanners collected 46 lakh pieces of rawhide of sacrificial animals last year. Last year, the price of rawhide per square feet was Tk 35 in the capital and Tk 30 outside Dhaka.
This year, Shahin hoped the price of per square feet raw hide would be Tk 40 to Tk 45 in the capital and Tk 35 to Tk 40 outside the capital.
Former President of Leather Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association Rezaul Karim Ansari expressed his satisfaction over the preparation of the government regarding rawhide procurement.
The tannery association sources said the total demand for rawhide in the country is about 22 crore cubic feet.