National Camel Research Centre

The National Camel Research Centre in Bikaner was set up by the Government of India in 1984 to study, conserve and promote the camel, an animal long central to life in the Rajasthan desert, where it has given people transport and milk for centuries.

Its scientists work on camel breeding, feeding and disease control to improve the animals' health and output, and the centre trains herders in looking after their animals and earning a living from them. Visitors can learn about the history, anatomy and behaviour of camels through exhibits and demonstrations, and camel races and dances are sometimes staged. The work has grown in importance as camel numbers in Rajasthan come under pressure from changing ways of life.