Livestock Marketing in Organised Cattle fairs of India

Livestock is an important component of mixed farming system in India. According to the 18th Livestock Census (2007), India possesses 529.70 million livestock. Contribution of livestock sector to the total GDP was 3.64 per cent during 2010. This sector plays an important role in stabilizing income and employment level in rural areas of India. Efficient livestock marketing is an important aspect of livestock development as it helps in sustaining livestock rearing through increased income. In India major chunk of livestock trade is carried out through unorganised markets involving unnecessary market charges and multiple middleman. Organised livestock markets/fairs are found only in some states like Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and few more. In this book, an attempt has been made to explore different aspects of organised cattle fairs of Rajasthan. A detailed analysis about the structure and functioning of cattle fairs, efficiency of channels, factors affecting bovine pricing and constraints faced by different stakeholders are presented in a simple manner. This book can serve as a good reference for students, researchers and policy makers working in the field of Agricultural Economics.