New Delhi: As Pongal celebrations began with fervour in Tamil Nadu on Sunday, Madurai's Avaniyapuram was seen hosting its native bull sport Jallikattu. Madurai District Collector Aneesh Sekhar said that the safety of bulls, players as well as spectators will be ensured, stressing that Avaniyapuram will follow guidelines issued by the Supreme Court and the Tamil Nadu government.
Bulls are let off to the field one after the other and the tamers try to tackle and control them in a marked area filled with coir pith.
"For Avaniyapuram, we have made all arrangements for the smooth conduct of Jallikattu. Ensuring the safety of bulls as well as players. Three levels of barricading were put in to ensure that bulls play in the play arena & spectators are also protected," Madurai District Collector Aneesh Sekhar said, as per news agency ANI.
"We will follow all regulations by the Supreme Court as well as Government of Tamil Nadu. In Avaniyapuram, there is a direction from High Court. Only 25 players will be playing around (at one time). We are expecting 300 players and more than 800 players to participate," he added.
According to news agency IANS, the first Jallikattu festival of the season was held last week on January 8 wherein thousands of people gathered at Thatchankurichi village in Tamil Nadu's Pudukottai district to watch and participate in the bull-taming sport.
The Jallikattu was declared open by state Ministers S. Raghupathy and Siva V. Meyyanathan with District Collector Kavitha Ramu administering the oath to the tamers and handing over t-shirts to them.
Hundreds of bulls were brought to Thatchankurichi village in Gandarvakottai taluk on mini freight carriers. As per IANS, there was heavy police deployment to regulate and control the crowd that thronged the venue. The festival was to be held on January 6 but was postponed due to security reasons.
As many as 485 bulls were let off to the field one after the other and the tamers tried to tackle and control them in a marked area filled with coir pith. The tamers had to produce a negative RT-PCR test report taken a day before participating in the tournament.
The bulls also underwent dope tests before they were allowed to march to the 'Vadivasal' or entry point to the ground. A 20-member medical team was deployed at the venue and a fleet of '108' Ambulances was deployed to rush the injured to the nearby Thanjavur Medical College Hospital. The total number of injured persons in the Jallikattu held last Sunday stood at 74, as per the IANS report.
Pongal in Tamil Nadu is celebrated over a period of four days with a variety of delectable savouries and sweets made with rice, milk, jaggery, sesame, and other ingredients. A special boiling of rice in a pot marks the main celebration of Pongal. Pongal celebrations began today and will continue till January 18.
(With Inputs From Agencies)