One of Mumbai’s favourite getaways — Matheran, known for its red mud, monkeys, many scenic views of valleys below, and its lifeblood, which is horses and riding — has a crumbling clinic and no veterinarian for more than 450 horses stationed there.
Hundreds of ghodawallas making their living in Matheran by giving horse rides to tourists. Matheran’s horse clinic, “if one can even call it that,” said Matheran regular and ace horseman Adil Gandhy, is in shambles. Besides the crumbling physical infrastructure, there is no veterinarian. Locals said the ghodawallahs manage when their animals are ill by trying to get help through vets in areas close by. The fact that a hill station whose lifeblood is horse riding has no clinic or vet is abysmal.
The clinic is in a state of complete collapse. PICS/SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Earlier this week, Ghodawallah Tukaram Akhade’s horse ‘Dayavaan’ took ill. Dayavaan was not ingesting anything for a couple of days and was spitting out a white substance. A vet Gandhy knew was away in the North, said, looking at videos, that the horse most probably had an obstruction which could be cured. With no vet in Matheran, Dayavaan was taken by a tempo to Pune three days later. He died during treatment. A teary Akhade said, “We need a vet, ideally a specialist in horses and a proper clinic. It was unbearable seeing Dayavaan struggle. I have another horse called Mahaan, but a big part of not just my livelihood but my life is gone.”
The need
Joy rides sustain tourism in Matheran. File pic
Rahul Ingale, chief officer, Matheran Hill Station Council, said, “Matheran needs a separate and independent Livestock Development Officer. Unfortunately, we are getting officers who take ‘additional charge’, not independent charge, in Matheran.”
Collapsed clinic
Dayavaan had become very weak. PIC/SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Asha Kadam, president of the Matheran Sthanik Ashwapal Sanghatna, said, “This ‘dawakhaana’ for horses is in a dilapidated condition. There is no light or water. We need a vet. We need repairs and amenities like light and water at the clinic.”
Distance distress
Ghodawallas say that “the current so-called clinic is at a distance of at least 1.5 km from where horses are stabled. It is difficult for an ill horse to be taken there, which today anyway is out of the question, as there is no vet. Yet, this can be shifted to the bazaar, where there is a plot and can be built there.”
Top jockeys
Jockey A Sandesh wins the Indian Derby in 2025. Pic/ASHISH RAJE
A number of the country’s top jockeys have come from Matheran, having honed their skill on the red mud trails of the hill station. They are known as the Matheran Boys at the Mumbai race course. The 2025 Indian Derby winning jockey, A Sandesh, is also from Matheran.
