Covering horns with rubber bushes could have avoided deaths: AWBI

CHENNAI: Rubber bushes fixed on the horns of bulls participating in the jallikattu events could have helped avoid the loss of precious lives in the last two weeks, said Dr SK Mittal, Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) nodal officer for Jallikattu.

“Bushes would help reduce 90 per cent of the injuries caused by the bulls to the tamers and spectators,” he said, while also reiterating the need to strictly adhere to the standard operating procedures for the event, even as the Supreme Court is yet to deliver its final verdict on the plea challenging jallikattu.

The expert’s appeal, made in a video, comes amid the death of at least five persons, including bull tamers, spectators and a minor, during the jallikattu and manjuvirattu events held across the State in January. Ever since the ban on jallikattu was lifted in 2017, as many as 88 persons, including tamers, bull owners and spectators, were killed.

In the video posted on his YouTube channel, Mittal appealed to the Collectors, police personnel, Animal Husbandry officials and organisers of the events to strictly follow the standard operating procedures for bull taming events.

“It is time to regulate and monitor hundreds of Jallikattu events to be held till May 31 this year. You all know the Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court is watching all our activities and the final judgement (on the petition challenging jallikattu) is yet to come,” he pointed out.

Bull registration should be done by the Animal Husbandry officials and not by organisers, preferably online, he said, adding that the number of bulls participating in an event should be restricted based on the duration of the event considering 60 bulls per hour and a maximum of 480 bulls for eight hours. “However, sometimes it is crossing 1,000 bulls in an event. It is highly objectionable,” he said.

The animals should be transported as per the guidelines under PCA Act and Motor Vehicles Act, he said. The police should act stern and book cases against those violating these norms, he demanding.

“Bull holding area should be as prescribed in the SOP. It should have proper arrangements for water, fodder, and veterinarians. The bull’s horns should [be fixed with] bushes at the bull holding area itself and it should be checked,” he said.

Mittal added that the bulls should be let into the arena only after medical check-up. “If we follow all the rules, we will be able to make jallikattu events cruelty-free,” he said.