JOHOR BARU: Johor recorded no new Covid-19 clusters from the recently held Hari Raya Aidiladha celebrations, says Tosrin Jarvanthi (pic).

       The state Islamic religious affairs committee chairman said that this is due to the strict standard operating procedures (SOPs) laid down by the authorities.

       “The SOPs were imposed after taking into consideration the Covid-19 pandemic in the state," said Tosrin.

       He added that the SOPs were drafted after getting the views of the state Health Department, the Johor Fatwa committee, the Veterinary Department and getting the consent from Johor Ruler Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar.

       The Bukit Permai assemblyman, said this in his reply to Najib Lep (PAS-Bukit Pasir) during the state assembly meeting held at Bangunan Sultan Ismail in Kota Iskandar here on Monday (Aug 23).

       He added that for this year’s celebration, the process for korban (animal sacrificial rites) was held at 164 slaughterhouses registered with the Veterinary Department.

       Tosrin said this covered the process of slaughtering, skinning, cutting and packaging the meat, where the mosque and surau committees or even organisers would directly supply the meat to recipients.

       He added that during the Covid-19 pandemic, all sectors have been affected such as tourism, hotels, including livestock.

       Tosrin said however, the ibadah korban was held successfully at slaughterhouses as some 6,037 animals have been sacrificed.

       “To make sure these slaughterhouses follow the SOP in place, the Johor Islamic Religious Department, Veterinary Department and police conducted checks before and during the korban," said Tosrin

       He urged breeders during the pandemic to be creative as the demand in the local market was still high, as it is being sustained with import meats.