Between 1,000 and 3,000 of the 14,366 camels that have arrived at the Pushkar Mela are being bought by butchers (kasai), who will take them to slaughter houses in West Bengal and Bangalore, according to Bagdi Ram Raika, Mahamantri of the Akhil Bharatyia Raika Pashu Palak Sangh.

This development is deeply worrying to the leaders of the Raika caste, whose livelihood is dependent on the breeding of camels and other livestock. Traditionally, the Raika keep herds of female camels and sell only male offspring as work animals at the Pushkar Fair, but because of lack of grazing, many of them are now forced to sell also female breeding stock. In a meeting held in the Ram Raika Temple on 25th of November, about 40 community representatives wrote a petition to the district administrators requesting them to stop the butchers from their activities. The Raika look at their animals as their children and feel that selling female animals will lead to the end of their traditional livelihoods.

official statistics, Hanwant Singh Rathore, Director of Lokhit Pashu-Palak Sansthan, an NGO working with the Raika camel breeders, stated that the camel population of Rajasthan declined from 73,0742 head in 1992 to 66,8237 head in 1997, or by 8%. This crisis is due to shrinking pasture resources and the spread of diseases. Camel breeders literally do not have a place to take their camels for grazing, and their animals suffer from permanent hunger, making them susceptible to diseases. However, the Department of Animal Husbandry is ignoring the situation. In order for the camel to be saved, it should liaise with the Forest Department, to ensure the continued availability of pasture. The grazing problem is biggest during the four months of the rainy season, when the fields on which the camels graze are being cultivated. Customarily, the camel herds were taken to the forest areas during this part of the year, but the Forest Department is preventing access almost everywhere.

Dr. Ilse Koehler-Rollefson, a veterinarian and camel expert working with the League for Pastoral Peoples in Germany, adds that the camel is an important part of Rajasthan’s biodiversity that is better able to cope with drought than any other type of livestock. “Quick action must be taken to prevent the disappearance of this animal which is such an important part of Rajasthans heritage and represents one of its main tourist attractions", she says.

Contributed by: Lokhit Pashu-Palak Sansthan