After years in wilderness, Marwari horse charges back

JODHPUR: A three-day-old filly ambles about Pratap Stud Farm on the outskirts of Jodhpur conjoined with its pedigreed mother. Chirmi, the mare, is a certified fifth-generation ‘Marwari’, a proud possession of Kunwar Pankaj Pratap Singh, himself a royal of Jhalamand Thikana.
The new arrival occupies Singh’s attention and will be named only after a religious ceremony.Like Singh, who admits to having only two interests—horses and horse power—dozens of other horse breeders in the region are devoting their energy to re-establishing the breed whose long stride breathes fire into Rajput legends.
It was the jeep to the elephant’s tank in mediaeval warfare. Swift, agile, dependable, loyal, and above all, brave in battle. Handsome beyond words, too. But to the regimented minds of British generals, its fiery temperament was a deal-breaker, and as the Crown subordinated the kingdoms of Rajputana in the 19th century, the Marwari horse lost its place in royal hearts and stables. Once the mainstay of Rajput cavalries, the breed was facing extinction by the early 1990s.
Col Dr Umaid Singh Rathore (retd), honorary secretary, All India Marwari Horse Society, said the 1992 livestock census of Food and A g r i c u l t u r e Organization (FAO) reported only about 3,000 purebred Marwari horses, and by 1997 their population had dwindled to 500.
“That was the time the Society came into the picture as the Marwari horse was declared an endangered breed. Today, there are about 80 stud farms of varying sizes and studs are registered with the society from all over India,” Rathore said, adding that they are now seeking the easing of procedures to export Marwari horses.
Brigadier Narpat Singh Rajpurohit, an avid equestrian who was recently elected chairperson for the tent pegging discipline of Asian Equestrian Federation, said the Marwari is a low maintenance breed that requires little food and water. Yet, owners lavish a lot of care on their horses. At Pratap Stud Farm, for instance, animals are given organic feed to a clockwork timetable.
Dr A K Gupta from National Research Centre on Equines, Hisar, who has been associated with the DNA mapping of purebred Marwari horses, told TOI Rajput rulers developed the breed to meet the demands of their cavalries by crossing native Indian ponies with Arabian and, possibly, Mongolian horses.
The breed was favoured by not only the warrior clans in Rajasthan but also commercial users. “At horse shows, they draw many buyers from Punjab, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra where they are used to demonstrate war manoeuvres in religious and cultural events, and above all as a trophy animal,” said Kunwar Pankaj Pratap Singh.
Rajpurohit also said the breed has been extensively used for ceremonial purposes and even in tongas, and now horse shows and races can go a long way in promoting it.

MARWAR’S OWN HORSE
Marwari horse is hailed as the original desert horse breed of Marwar region of Rajasthan (Malani in Barmer district) and can withstand intense heat, cold and other adverse climatic conditions. It is capable of covering long distances with good speed by virtue of its strong limbs and hooves. This breed is known for its elegance, viguor, endurance, intelligence, animated gait, beauty, alertness and peculiar ear tips touching each other when horse rotates its ears to 180 degree
COLOUR
Interestingly Albino colour is a disqualification for this breed which comes in a wide array of colours including Dark Brown, Bay, Dark Bay, Pie Bald, Skew Bald, Chestnut, Dun, Blue Roan, Grey and Flea Biiten and Dappled Grey
DISTRIBUTION
Natives of Malani area of Barmer district in Marwar region of Rajasthan, a couple of villages including Nagarm Gurha, Jasol, Sindhari, Patodi, Bakhasar, some areas of Bhinmal and Sanchore and Sayla tehsil of Jalore district are the nucleus of this Marwari breed of horses. Presently these are also being reared in Shekhawati and Mewar region of Rajasthan