Is India's donkey population falling prey to Chinese 'Ejiao' producers?

A report says that cruel and often illegal treatment of donkeys by local traders is rife, and many donkeys experience horrendous and inexcusable suffering

The 20th livestock census released few months back has shown a sharp decline in India’s donkey population, much of which has been attributed to their decreasing use in short-distance transport in the country’s hinterland.

Between 2007 and 2012, India donkey population fell by 23 per cent and thereafter — from 2012 to 2019 — it further dropped by 61.23 per cent, leaving just 120,000 donkeys in India, according to the latest provisional census released months back.

However, animal welfare activists like Brooke India and others feel that the sharp fall in India’s donkey population is part of a global decline in their