February 5 marked real Pongal fest in Avaniyapuam

Many of the Avaniyapuram people in new attires and their relatives descending on the town to witness jallikattu gave the town a festive look.  While Jallikattu was conducted at Avaniyapuram on the day of Thai Pongal every year till 2014, in Palamedu and Alanganallur, the sport was conducted on the subsequent days. 

Sanjay Gandhi, a resident of Avaniyapuram and deputy president of Hindu Munnani at Avaniyapuram, said that they were eagerly waiting for the day to see jallikattu back in their village and it finally happened. 

“As jallikattu was conducted every year on the day of Pongal, we celebrated February 5 as day of Thai Pongal,” he said. People of Avaniyapuram had staged several protests in the past two years and they were so happy to witness their dream come true. They also hoped that jallikattu is conducted every year without any hindrance. 

As there was no jallikattu for the past two years, the Thai Pongal festival remained a low key affair in the town. Bose, a resident, claimed that people from the town started visiting their relatives out of town, contrary to the regular practice. But on Sunday, special prayers were offered in the houses in the early morning and people assembled in the Vadivasal much ahead of the scheduled time of the sport.  

As is the case during Thai Pongal days, sugarcane was sold near the jallikattu venue, and the youngsters actively participated in jallikattu just as they did prior to 2014 with absolute enthusiasm. The bull fighters were separated into three teams and two dress colours were given to them. One of the teams had pure yellow colour while the second team had green colour mixed in their dresses.

They were allowed to tame the bulls in alternate hours and officials ensured that all the bull fighters were given chance to tame the bulls. Madurai Collector K Veera Raghava Rao and Police Deputy Commissioner Arun Sakthi Kumar actively directed the bull fighters and the public not to cross the barricades or break them.

As many as 138 bulls from Tiruchirappalli, Salem, Karur and Namakkal districts participated in the jallikattu organised at Pottireddipatti village on the Namakkal-Thuraiyur road on Sunday.  Namakkal Collector Asia Mariam inaugurated the event after administering an oath both to the organisers and the tamers to abide by the rules and not harm or harass the bulls. Bulls were checked by veterinarians from the Animal Husbandry Department and certified fit for participating in the event, which went on till 3 pm.  In total, 263 youngsters were qualified to tame the bulls, after medical examination and the winners given a variety of prizes. Owners of the bulls that couldn’t not be contained were also felicitated. In all, 20 persons sustained injuries the event and among them the bull tamer Ajith Kumar (23) of Ponneri and spectators Shanmugam (50) and Subramani (58) from Pottireddypatti, Nallusamy (75) from N Pudukottai and Subramani (56) of Varagur have were severely hurt.  They were given firstaid at the venue and rushed to the Government District Head Quarters Hospital in Namakkal.

The third annual three-day Kongu Naatu Kaalnadai Thiruvizha (Kongu Nadu Cattle Festival) at Samathur near Pollachi in Coimbatore district concluded with distribution of prizes to owner of the proud winning native bulls, goats, roosters and horses, on Sunday. Actor Karthi presided over the ceremony and gave away prizes to the winner. Ramesh’s bull from Kangayam in Tirupur district was adjudged the Best Bull in terms of health as well as physical appearance for its horns, crest, tail, legs and hoofs. The bull won a two sovereign gold coin for its owner. Native breed dogs such as Rajapalayam, Chippiparai and Kanni also participated in the competition in their respective category. In all, 26 prizes with total prize money close to Rs two lakh was given to the winners.