Raikas from Rajasthan

ILEIA Newsletter Vol. 13 No. 2 p. 36

The Raikas in the Pali district of south−central Rajasthan of western India have been known as camel experts for centuries. They belong to a pastoral caste who keep large herds of female camels for supplying work camels to various clienteles.

Presently, the Raikas face complex problems which are undermining their subsistence base. At the root of their problems is the lack of grazing opportunities because of an expansion in crop cultivation due to Selling camel milk was taboo, but with the help of increased irrigation, shortening of fallow, double the local spirit healer, who sympathised with the cropping, etc. But deterioration and alienation of idea, a breakthrough was reached. communally owned pastures, and closure of some of their traditional pasture areas for wildlife preserves and reforestation, are also important causes. During the rainy season, when crops are grown, the camels have literally no place to go to. The only place left are the Aravalli forests which are also mostly "protected", i.e. closed for grazing and are infested with flies which transmit diseases. The ensuing malnutrition predisposes camels to diseases, such as trypanosomiasis and mange, resulting in high adult mortality.

Herd sizes have thus decreased − and since income is (mostly) a function of herd size, camel breeding is no longer profitable. Another contributing factor, at least in the groups we are working with, is a lack of investment in breeding bulls, so the quality of the camels produced has also deteriorated and this is reflected in the prices obtained.

The applied research project ‘Camel Husbandry Improvement Project’ aimed at a better understanding of the complex problems faced by the Raikas. To track the reproductive performance of individual animals, ear−tagging was essential, but not popular. Of course the Raikas know their animals individually, but many animals have the same name in a herd and for the researcher this can create confusion.

The practice of exchanging animals between herds on a temporary basis also created complications. However, lured by the promise of free prophylactic treatment for 'trypanosomiasis', eventually more families wanted to participate than the project could support.

Problems of empowerment

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There are many possible technical remedial measures that can be taken. Our diagnosis is that the traditional extensive management system, with the large herds that the Raikas are used to − and which worked well earlier when there was lots of space − is no longer viable in the current scenario. We are now at a stage where project staff are trusted by the Raikas and are approached by them whenever livestock related problems arise.

The major challenge, however, is to ‘empower’ the Raikas to take on these measures themselves. The community is run by the more conservative old men, and ‘committees’ that could be responsible for innovations are alien to them. Another problem is that the young and able bodied men are too busy herding to want to attend meetings. This surfaced when the project was to make available a superior breeding bull, and to avoid conflict, agreement was needed on how this benefit should be distributed and who would be responsible for selecting a good animal at the fair.

Surprising success

At some levels, however, change can happen astoundingly quickly. Only three years ago the idea of selling camel milk was total taboo. It was regarded as equivalent to ‘selling one’s son’, and local lore held that those who tried it met with great misfortune. The majority of Raikas were very reticent about it. We confided the problem to a local spirit healer, or Bhopa, who commanded great respect in the community.

Sympathetic to the idea, this wise man furnished us with a few handfuls of wheat grains that he had endowed with a 'mantra' and told us to distribute them among the camel breeders as a token of his support for camel milk marketing. This was the breakthrough. Attitudes changed overnight. Within a few months, and assisted in the collection of the milk and arrangement of markets by the project, practically everybody became involved.

Having a daily or weekly cash income, instead of the yearly income from camel sales at the market in Pushkar, was a new experience for the Raikas. Especially the women took this up avidly, exponentially exceeding the indicators for participation and income increase that had been set by the funding agency. The project is now passing from the data collection stage to helping people with social and economic ‘empowerment’.

The trust between the Raikas and the project is established and the veterinary support and marketing help is appreciated. But the dilemma of the development worker remains: How to find a balance between research and seeking ways of helping others without being intrusive or interfering in their lives?

Ilse Köhler−Rollefson, League for Pastoral Peoples, Pragelatostr. 20, 64372 Ober−Ramstadt, Germany. Hanwant Singh Rathore, Lokhit Pashu−Palak Sansthan, Bhagwan Mahaveer Colony, Mundara Road, Sadri 306702, Pali District, Rajasthan, India.

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