LAHORE: Shahpur Kanjran Cattle Market Punjab`s biggest animal trade hub on Wednesday received Rs500 million less than last year`s total bid amount.

The highest bid the market received for outsourcing of the animal levy, parking fee, and allied facilities` charges for the next fiscal year (2025-26), starting on July 1, remained Rs1.5 billion, whereas it was auctioned for Rs2 billion for the ongoing fiscal year ending on June 30.

`The current contractor of the market, who had won the last auction for Rs2 billion, couldn`t submit his bid due to some glitches in the online bidding system. That is why a new bidder, who succeeded in submitting a bid of Rs1.5 billion, appeared to be the highest bidder,` an official of the Local Government Department told Dawn.

He said another reason that might have caused the reduction in the bid offered is the ongoing construction/remodeling of the existing Shahpur market and the shifting of the cattle trade to an adjacent smaller place.

`As the completion of the ongoing construction works and the start of the animal trade business may take three to six monthsmore, the bidders, in such a situation, think it bettertoreduce thebidprice/offerinsteadof increasing it. So, this may also be a reason, and it seems justified,` he said.

According to the Local Government Department, the online auction process for cattle markets in the Lahore and Multan divisions through a newly introduced IT-based e-auction system has been completed.

Conducted under the supervision of a Punjab Cattle Market Management Company (PCMMC) officer, the digital bidding attracted considerable interest, resulting in bids worth billions of rupees. The Shahpur Kanjran cattle market in Lahore received the highest bid of Rs1.5 billion, whereas another contractor secured two major contracts, placing a bid of Rs486.7 million for the Model Cattle Market in Sheikhupura and Rs1.571 billion for the Jaswantgarh cattle market (Multan).

Other markets that received bids included those in Pattoki, Safdarabad, Nankana Sahib, Luddan, Machiwal, Jamlera, Khanewal, Dunyapur, Jalalpur, Gaggo, Vehari Stadium, and Tibba Sultan. For the Multan division, the reserve price for 10 cattle markets was set at Rs1.176 billion, while the total received bids amounted to Rs2.637billion-far exceeding expectations.

The department says that the implementation of the e-auction system in Lahore and Multan is a testament to the benefits of digital governance. It termed the process transparent. The next phase of the e-auction will cover cattle markets in the Sargodha, Gujranwala, and Bahawalpur divisions on May 22, followed by Sahiwal, Rawalpindi, and Dera Ghazi Khan divisions on May 23. A total of 112 cattle markets across nine divisions are being auctioned through this system.

According to a spokesperson for the department, the secretary of the local government department has termed the e-auction process a transparent one based on integrity, fairness, and a modern approach.

However, Local Government Department Secretary Mian Shakeel said he would look into the reasons behind the reduction in the bid price of the Shahpur Kanjran cattle market.

`I think the current contractor was unhappy with the bid price of Rs2 billion, as he seems to be at a loss due to the disturbance in the business caused by the shifting of the mandi to a narrow place and other reasons. This is why he avoided participating in the bid for Shahpur Kanjran,` he explained.

`But I will check and tell you soon,` he pledged.