Ahmedabad: In the horse country emerging along the Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar-Mehsana belt, post-Covid years have redrawn the map of equine breeding in Gujarat. What was once a niche pursuit has turned into a fast-growing business, with stud farms reporting steady demand for high-bred Marwari lineages and mares arriving from outside the state for breeding.Stud farm owners in Ahmedabad and periphery are no longer only horsing around. Dharmendra Patel, president of the Equestrian Association of Gujarat, says that the belt between Ahmedabad and Mehsana currently has over 4,000 horses. “The number has increased significantly since the Covid era. Before 2020, the estimated number would be around 2,000 – indicating doubling of the numbers in a matter of 6-7 years with a similar rise in stud farms and farmhouses maintaining horses,” says Patel.Earlier, recreational and generational horse owners went to Rajasthan and Punjab to source for colts and mares for breeding. The trend has reversed after Covid when many farm owners began investing in the horse breeding business and raising stallions of Kathiawadi and Marwari pure-breds. “This year, several local farms hosted mares from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Punjab for breeding,” added Patel.Ronak Patel, a stud farm owner in Vadaj who has two stallions and three mares says business is good. “Based on the demand and genealogy of the breed, the fees charged are Rs 50,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh. Due to the popularity of the good breeds and demand for breeding, many farmers having good land in the outskirts of the cities are turning to stud farms,” he says.Behind the surge is a clear economic pivot, as rising input costs and uncertain returns in agriculture push some landowners to diversify into equine breeding. While maintaining horses remains expensive, breeders say the potential payouts—whether through covering fees or sale of young stock—have made the model attractive in peri-urban Gujarat, where farmland on city outskirts is increasingly being repurposed for farmhouses and stud operations.Bharatsinh Rajput, a farmer from Lakhani village in Banaskantha district, says he turned to raising and breeding horses to tide over uncertainty of traditional agriculture. Today, his income from horses far surpasses income from farming. “Farming income is unpredictable and input costs have also gone up. I thus decided to raise horses both for our own use and for breeding. I currently have 15 Marwari horses on 12 acre land. Depending on lineage, colts go for Rs 5 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.”Breeding economics is supported by a lifestyle shift and a broader push in equestrian activities across Gujarat’s cities. Organisers and associations point to more riders, more privately kept horses on the outskirts, and a higher frequency of events than a decade ago.Dharmendra Patel points out a growing trend in Ahmedabad, Surat and Rajkot where HNIs buy horses and house them in farms for professionals-led upkeep. “During weekends, the families ride horses, click pictures and unwind,” said Patel.“Compared to one or two horse shows held in the state a decade ago, seven to eight shows are organised now both by the state government and private players. Need of the hour is better coordination with stakeholders to ensure breed conservation,” he said.
