Donkeys to walk the ramp to attract buyers at fair

Jaipur: Hundreds of donkeys dressed infancy clothes and ornaments will walk the ramp to impress prospective buyers in the 500-year-old donkey fair which starts on the outskirts of the city from October 1.

Bhavgarh-Bandhya village, which is about 20 kms from the state capital, will witness the three-day fair. "'Khalkhani mata gadarbh' (donkey) fair will start on October 1. It is organised jointly by state tourism department and Manav Seva Sansthan," president of Akhil Bhartiya Gadarbh Mela Vikas Samiti, Bhagwat Singh Rajawat told reporters today.

Samiti's efforts to find a chief guest to open the event proved futile as no political leader was interested in donkey fair. So it was decided that any seller coming with maximum animals would inaugurate it, Rajawat said. A special ramp show will be organised for better sale of donkeys, which will be dressed in different fancy clothes and decorated with ornaments, he said.

"Last year, donkeys were sold between Rs 100 to Rs 16,000, while a joint organisation of fair used to cost Rs 3 to 4 lakh every year," he said. Rajawat claimed that it was Asia's biggest donkey fair where buyers from all parts of the country come. Twenty different stalls will be set up for sale of products related to all age and kinds of donkeys, including pony and khachar, he said, adding that its history revealed that this fair was being organised at the same place for the last five centuries.