Most of the race-fit horses displaced from Delhi have found accommodation at other racing centres and will continue their careers. The jockeys who rode them have been left facing a very different reality. Some have lost their homes, others their licences and many their livelihood. A few have been forced to take up delivery jobs to survive. In these extraordinary circumstances, the racing fraternity must not forget the humans behind the horses.

For the jockeys associated with the Delhi Race Club, the disruption has gone far beyond losing a place to ride. Eighteen jockeys have lost their homes at the club and have been given a month to vacate before the houses were demolished. Of the 28 jockeys affected, two have opted for retirement while the others have applied for licences at other clubs.

Only a few have so far been accommodated with B licences. The others continue to wait, deprived of the opportunity to earn a living through the profession for which they have trained for years.

The human consequences are particularly distressing. Some of these jockeys have been forced to take up alternative jobs, including delivery work and driving for app-based services. There is, of course, no shame in honest work. But there is something deeply poignant about a professional jockey, trained to ride thoroughbreds at speed, having to ride a motorcycle for Swiggy or Zomato simply to support himself and his family.

A jockey is a highly specialised professional. Years of training, physical conditioning, experience and an understanding of horses go into developing a successful rider. By the time a jockey has established himself, riding is not merely a job. It is his profession and the skill on which his livelihood depends.

It is unrealistic to expect someone who has spent most of his working life in the saddle to suddenly begin an entirely different career. His most valuable skill is the one he has spent years acquiring.

This is why the appeal from Trevor Patel, President of the Jockeys Association of India, deserves the sympathetic consideration of the racing authorities and clubs.

Every licensed jockey is governed by a disciplinary framework. The Stewards and Stipendiary Stewards are responsible for enforcing the rules and maintaining racing standards. If a jockey commits an offence, the disciplinary process provides for punishment. If he commits another offence after being permitted to ride, appropriate action can again be taken, including suspension or withdrawal of his licence where warranted.

Punishment should serve a purpose. It should correct, reform and deter. It should not become an indefinite means of crippling a person’s ability to earn a livelihood after the prescribed punishment has been served.

This raises a legitimate question about the refusal by some clubs to accommodate certain jockeys on the stated ground that they are “not desirable”. Such decisions, particularly during an extraordinary crisis, deserve careful and individual consideration.

If a jockey has served a disciplinary penalty and is otherwise eligible to ride, should he continue to carry an unofficial professional sentence? And if a jockey commits an offence in the future, are there not already adequate mechanisms to deal with him?

The clubs that have opened their doors to some of the displaced jockeys deserve appreciation. But those who remain without licences also deserve consideration.

These men have been an essential part of racing. They have taken the risks, ridden the horses and contributed to the sport for years. They should not be regarded as essential when racing needs them and dispensable when they themselves fall upon difficult times.

There is also a larger lesson for Indian racing. The Jockeys Association of India has been seeking for more than two decades a single licensing system for jockeys throughout the country, arguing that the present A and B licence system serves little useful purpose beyond insurance-related requirements.

The present crisis underlines the need to examine that demand seriously. But reform can come later. The immediate issue is the welfare of the jockeys who have suddenly found themselves without a home and without a livelihood.

The racing industry has always depended on an ecosystem of horses, jockeys, trainers, stable staff and others who work behind the scenes. When circumstances force horses to move, arrangements are made to ensure that they continue racing.

The humans who made that possible deserve the same consideration.

The jockeys are not asking for charity. They are asking for an opportunity to work.

In these extraordinary circumstances, the racing authorities and clubs should show some flexibility, compassion and understanding. Those who are eligible to ride should be given a fair opportunity to continue their profession, subject of course to the rules and disciplinary framework governing the sport.

The horses have found accommodation. Surely the jockeys who rode them deserve a place in the saddle too.