From Herds to Markets: Entrepreneurial Innovations for Economic Resilience in Camel Pastoralism

AbstractCamel pastoralism, a socio-ecological cornerstone of India’s arid regions, is under severe threat from climate change and market volatility. This study evaluates the impact of integrated entrepreneurial innovations specifically mobile veterinary clinics, hydroponic fodder systems, and value-added camel milk products using a combination of ANOVA, MANOVA, and regression analyses across Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Haryana. Results demonstrate that each innovation independently contributes to pastoral sustainability: mobile clinics reduce herd mortality by 25% (F = 7.251, p < 0.001), hydroponics ensure year-round fodder with 90% water savings (F = 9.306, p < 0.001), and value addition boosts pastoral incomes by 35% (F = 7.423, p < 0.001). When deployed together, these innovations generate synergistic resilience, improving market access by 50% (Pillai’s Trace = 1.960, p < 0.001) and transforming market volatility into an income opportunity (ß = 2.515, p < 0.001), while collectively explaining 65.9% of variance in adaptive capacity (R2 = 0.659). This underscores that bundling innovations rooted in both entrepreneurial adaptation and traditional ecological knowledge is essential to sustaining camel pastoral livelihoods. Policy must prioritise co-deployment of these interventions through pastoralist-led cooperatives and advance national recognition of dryland custodianship.