Export of sugar and onions are not the only things banned in India. The government of India also does now allow the sale abroad of Indian horses. There is, of course, a dispute going on among equine organisations, breeders and the government on whether all Indian horses should be banned or only the pure-bred ones. But till clarity emerges on the issue, you can buy and keep these coveted creatures only in the country.
India has five indigenous horse breeds: Marwari, Kathiawari, Zanskari, Manipuri and Spiti. Of them, the Marwari and Kathiawari are the most well-known, their "lyre" ears which bend inwards and can be rotated 180 degrees being the only sort in horse breeds around the world. Horse experts say these creatures are lean, athletic, strong, loyal and adaptive to all weather conditions. The Manipuri horse is the quintessential polo horse and is easily manoeuvrable, while the Zanskari and Spiti breeds are strong ponies adept at work in mountainous terrain.
The tall Marwari and Kathiawari horses are put to all uses in India, and are commonly seen at marriages as the regal bearer of the groom. "These horses are most suited for endurance and to my mind are the only breeds in the world able to compete against the Arab if ever given a chance," says Raghuvendra Singh Dundlod, secretary general, Indigenous Horse Society of India, a Jaipur-based association that works to preserve and promote the Indian horse. Their use in horse safaris by foreigners has earned them a reputation abroad too. They also excel in the sport of tent-pegging, and the mounted police in various states have acquired these breeds for the purpose.
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"Only six Marwaris were exported to the US in 2000, after which restrictions were imposed by the Indian government," points out Catherine Moorey, chair, Friends of Marwari and Kathiawari Horse, UK, a non-government organisation in Britain started to secure international recognition of and improvement of the two breeds. "That means it is nigh impossible to export indigenous horse breed out of India." A young Marwari/Kathiawari would cost around Rs 3 lakh, though prices are often skewed by demand within elite circles for the joy of owning a "status symbol" that the horse has become.
As Moorey says, the interaction between Indian horse breeders with their counterparts abroad should help protect the Indian pedigree. "Horsemen throughout the world are alerting the local breeders to conformation issues, good and bad, that may not have been analysed before to such an extent within India. An experienced and critical eye is now on these breeds from horsemen who have developed and tweaked their own foreign breeds in the past - they can help India avoid making the same breeding mistakes that others may have made," she says.
Breed standards are determined by the various societies formed to protect the five Indian horses. "The Indigenous Horse Society of India started the first horse registration and passport system of our own in 1997 in an internationally accepted format," says Dundlod. "We still continue to do our work on this with local breeders and with the Marwari horses which are in USA, Spain, France, Sri Lanka and Oman."
The Department of Animal Husbandry in the ministry of agriculture has recently promoted a separate Marwari Horse Registration Stud Book Society to register all pure-bred animals, as per its own breed standards. The government also proposes to start such societies for the Kathiawari, Manipuri, Zanskari and Spiti breeds. This has drawn the ire of many horse societies, who have told the government that there should be a single "indigenous stud book authority of India" and the matter is under discussion.
