No cattle, horse fair in Amritsar on Baisakhi

Tribune News Service
Amritsar, April 13

With Covid-19 restrictions in place, centuries-old cattle and horse fair was not organised on Baisakhi. However, a few horse lovers did reach Vallah Mandi.

The 14-day fair at Vallah starts seven days before Baisakhi and continues seven days after the festival. The cattle farmers, especially horse breeders from across the state, participate in the event, where buyers from Jammu & Kashmir, Rajasthan and Delhi arrive to purchase animals.

How it started

• The fair was started by Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh Guru, to fulfil the need of horses for his martial military. The British government made it an organised event as horse show and cattle fair.
• The cattle fair is organised biannually by the Panchayat Department on Diwali and Baisakhi. Farmers said other milch animals are prominently brought to the fair on Diwali, but horses occupy centrestage during Baisakhi fair.

Karnail Singh, a horse owner from Khankot said: "I have been visiting the fair since my childhood. The Baisaki fair is not being held from the last two years. But some regular visitors did visit. No trade of cattle was organised."

The cattle fair is organised biannually by the Panchayat Department on Diwali and Baisakhi. Farmers said other milch animals are prominently brought to the fair on Diwali, but horses occupy the centrestage during the fair.

The fair was started by Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh Guru, to fulfil the need of horses for his martial military. The British government made it an organised event as horse show and cattle fair.