Mysore/Mysuru: With just a day left for the Bakrid festival, a variety of sheep have arrived from villages for a week and the busy Millennium Circle (LIC Circle) at Bannimantap has literally turned into a Sheep Fair.

Bakrid is a ‘Festival of Sacrifice’ honouring the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God’s command.

Sheep is being sold for the festival after two years of COVID where farmers and vendors faced heavy losses and this year, the market is good, fetching better prices.

Shepherds have arrived from far-off villages like Srirangapatna, Kirugavalu, Maddur, Bannur, T. Narasipur, Pandavapura, KRS, Mandya and Chamarajanagar with their livestock and brisk business is taking place today that will go on till midnight. However, the rain is playing a spoilsport.

Buyers said that the prices of sheep have shot up anywhere between Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 13,000 when compared to 2019. “A healthy sheep that was priced at Rs. 25,000 in 2019 is being sold for Rs. 35,000 now and some of the breeds cannot be afforded by the common man,” a buyer said.

Known for its special taste owing to its fat content, the sale of Bandur breed sheep is brisk and there is high demand. Also, sheep from Kirugavalu are popular.

The sale of sheep is common before the Bakrid festival and the vendors have been demanding that the District Administration should provide space for the sellers to sell their livestock.

As the District Administration and the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) have failed to provide a suitable place for the sellers, they have been conducting business at the LIC Circle for many years.

The vendors crowd around the LIC Circle and at times cause traffic jams as there is a heavy rush of traders and buyers who spill onto the roads.

By the end of the day, the MCC Pourakarmikas arrive at the place to clean the surroundings.