DHAKA, June 20 (Xinhua) -- Muslims across Bangladesh sacrificed over 10 million animals, mostly cows and goats, during the Eid al-Adha festival, according to estimates shared by a ministry.
In a statement on Tuesday, Bangladesh's Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock said this year's Eid al-Adha saw the sacrifice of 10,408,918 animals.
Last year, 10.1 million animals were sacrificed across the country, it said.
According to the ministry's data, the highest number of animals were sacrificed in capital Dhaka region this year.
Among the sacrificed animals, there were 4,766,859 cows, 112,918 buffaloes, 5,056,719 goats, 471,149 sheep, and 1,273 other animals.
The festival is celebrated on the 10th day of the 12th and final month in the Islamic lunar calendar after the holy Hajj. It also occurs approximately two months and 10 days after Eid al-Fitr, another big religious festival that marks the end of Muslims' holy fasting month of Ramadan.
After prayers, Muslims in Bangladesh sacrificed animals such as sheep, cows, goats and camels in the name of Allah almighty.
Muslim who has financial means sacrifices animals and distributes the meat to family and the poor.■