15th January 2025 (9 Topics)
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Declining Camel Population
Context
The camel population in India faces a critical decline that requires immediate intervention.
About Camel (Camelus dromedarius or Camelus bactrianus)
- India has the third largest camel population in the world; and the majority of these are in Rajasthan.
- The Thar Desert of Rajasthan is their homeland. It provides them an adequate and ideal vegan diet along with climatic conditions that they require to thrive and remain healthy.
- The different breeds of camels in India are: Bikaneri, Jaisalmeri, Kachchhi, Mewari and Jalori Camels.
- Their physiology is suited to a dry desert climate (hot day, cool night) because they can go for long periods without drinking water and their padded feet are suited to soft desert sands.
- The lifespan of a camel is 20 years. It starts breeding at about 4 years but conceives once in 2½ years. There is therefore no way in which their numbers can multiply fast.
- Declining Population
- Across the world, the camel population rose from nearly 13 million in the 1960s to more than 35 million now, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
- But their numbers are on a drastic decline in India – from nearly a million camels in 1961 to just approximately 200,000 today. And the fall has been particularly sharp in recent years.
- The camel population has shown a declining trend over the last 4 Livestock Censuses, i.e. 17th (2003), 18th (2007), 19th (2012) and 20th (2019) when it was 2.5 lakh, having decreased by 37.1% over the previous Census.
- Government Policies & Interventions
- The Rajasthan government passed the Rajasthan Camel (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation of Temporary Migration or Export) Act. The law prohibits the transport, illegal possession and slaughtering of camels.
- Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, declared 2024 as the International Year of Camelids to highlight the key role the animal plays in the lives of millions of households in more than 90 countries.
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