Pushkar Fair

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title: "Pushkar Fair" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["festivals-in-rajasthan", "fairs-in-india", "pushkar", "animal-festival-or-ritual", "animal-shows", "camels", "november"] description: "Camel, horse, cattle trading fair with cultural events" topic_path: "geography/india" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pushkar_Fair" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Camel, horse, cattle trading fair with cultural events ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox recurring event"]

Field	Value
native_name	Kartik Mela
native_name_lang	hi
image	(A) Camel Pushkar fair.jpg
alt	A camel cart
caption	A Camel cart at the Pushkar Fair
status
genre	Livestock, cultural festival
date	start of Kartik (month) to Kartik Purnima; Peak: last 5 days
frequency	Annually
location	Pushkar, Ajmer district, Rajasthan, India
coordinates
country	India
participants	Farmers,
Hindu pilgrims,
Tourists (domestic, foreign)
attendance	200,000
activity	Fête, livestock show (camels, horses, cows), dance, rural sports, ferris wheels, competitions
::

| native_name = Kartik Mela | native_name_lang = hi | image = (A) Camel Pushkar fair.jpg | alt = A camel cart | caption = A Camel cart at the Pushkar Fair | status = | genre = Livestock, cultural festival | date = start of Kartik (month) to Kartik Purnima; Peak: last 5 days | frequency = Annually | location = Pushkar, Ajmer district, Rajasthan, India | coordinates = | country = India | participants = Farmers, Hindu pilgrims, Tourists (domestic, foreign) | attendance = 200,000 | activity = Fête, livestock show (camels, horses, cows), dance, rural sports, ferris wheels, competitions The Pushkar Fair, also called the Pushkar Camel Fair or locally as Kartik Mela or Pushkar ka Mela is an annual multi-day livestock fair and cultural fête held in the town of Pushkar near Ajmer city in Ajmer district in (Rajasthan, India). The fair starts with the Hindu calendar month of Kartik and ends on the Kartik Purnima, which typically overlaps with late October and early November in the Gregorian calendar. In 1998, over 1 million visitors came to Pushkar throughout the year. The Pushkar fair alone attracts over 200,000 visitors.

| align=left | image1 = (1) Pushkar Fair, Camel Festival, I love my camel.jpg | alt1=Livestock at the fair|width1=2607|height1=1741 | image2 = Giant wheels at Pushkar, Rajasthan.jpg | alt2=Fete|width2=480|height2=640 | image3 = Tug of war, at Pushkar Fair, Rajasthan.jpg | alt3= Sports |width3=350|height3=245 | image4 = (2) Faces and colours at Pushkar Fair.jpg | alt4=Ceremonies|width4=2816|height4=2112 | image5 = Rajasthan, India (27637376753).jpg | alt5=Livestock |width5=3618 |height5=2456 | image6 = Hot Air Balloon Ride by Sky Waltz.jpg | alt6=Hot air balloon|width6=4288|height6=2848 | footer = Pushkar fair attracts nearly 200,000 visitors. The Pushkar fair is one of India's largest camel, horse and cattle fairs. Apart from the trading of livestock, it is an important pilgrimage season for Hindus to the Pushkar lake. Pushkar fair has also become a significant tourist attraction for domestic and international travellers, given the cooler season, the abundance of colourful cultural themes. Cultural events and competitions include dances, tug of war between women teams as well as men teams, the "matka phod", "longest moustache" competition, "bridal competition", camel races and others.

Thousands of people go to the banks of the Pushkar Lake where the fair takes place. Men trade their livestock, which includes camels, horses, cows, sheep and goats. Rural families shop at the handicraft stalls full of bracelets, clothes, textiles and fabrics. A camel race starts off the festival, with music, songs and exhibitions to follow. Between these events, the most waited for is the test of how the camel is able to bring the items. In order to demonstrate, the men go up on the group of camels one after another.

Pushkar is in centre-east part of Rajasthan, on the western side of Aravalli mountains. The nearest airport from Pushkar is Kishangarh Airport in Ajmer, about 40 km northeast. Jaipur is well connected with all the major cities in India. Pushkar is about 10 km from Ajmer, connected via Pushkar road (Highway 58) which goes over the Aravalli Range mountains. Ajmer is also the nearest major railway Station. Pushkar Railway Station is connected to Ajmer Railway Station.

Crowd

Around 500,000-600,000 people visit Pushkar during the main Pushkar festival.

References

References

1. David L. Gladstone. (2013). "From Pilgrimage to Package Tour: Travel and Tourism in the Third World". Routledge.
2. James G. Lochtefeld. (2002). "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z". The Rosen Publishing Group.
3. [https://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2013/11/14/indias-camel-doctors/ Pushkar Fair] {{Webarchive. link. (24 October 2017 The Wall Street Journal (14 November 2013))
4. "Pushkar Fair, Rajasthan".
5. [https://www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/destinations/rajasthan-its-fair-time-in-pushkar/ RAJASTHAN: IT'S FAIR TIME IN PUSHKAR] {{Webarchive. link. (24 October 2017 , Outlook Traveller (26 October 2016))
6. Lasseter, Tom. (25 November 2015). "Pushkar Camel Fair Lights Up the Indian Thar Desert". Bloomberg.
7. "The Desert Comes Alive Once Again... Pushkar Camel Fair 2011".
8. link. (26 July 2021 [[The Imperial Gazetteer of India]], 1909, v. 21, ''p. 1.'')
9. Ennala Praveen. (2006). "Pushkar: moods of a desert town". Rupa & Co..

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