Tirupati: Youth enthusiastically take part in Jallikattu

Tirupati: Jallikattu, a bull taming sport, was conducted in some parts of Chittoor district on the occasion of Kanuma on Sunday.

The Kanuma festival will be celebrated after Sankranti particularly in rural areas as it is the festival of animals and on the day the farmers decorate their cattle including bulls, cows, sheep, rams and offer prayers to them according priority to the cattle which help them eke out a livelihood. Jallikattu, though a native sport of Tamil Nadu, it is also organised in different villages in Chittoor district which is located on the border of Tamil Nadu.

The sport was organised in Gudupalli and Jarugu villages in Kuppam area on the occasion of Kanuma festival on Sunday. At Gudupalli village in Kuppam area, 12 persons reportedly sustained injuries in the bull taming sport. Some youth who tried to catch running bulls were trampled and some were tossed away with the horns by bulls. Though ban was imposed on the sport in AP State, it is being held during the Sankranti festivities at the border villages. With the direct involvement of politicians in organising the events, the police confine themselves to the role of spectators.

Jallikattu was also organised at Rangampeta in Chandragiri mandal which is being represented by YSRCP MLA Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy. The Rangampeta village is popular in organising Jallikattu for a long time now.

Usually, every year on Kanuma festival day, a large number of people from Tirupati and from other neighbouring areas visit the village to witness the sport.

People particularly youth enthusiastically gather on either sides of roads as bulls run through their paths. Many people occupy rooftops to witness the event. Local politicians like sarpanches of nearby panchayats and leaders attend to witness the sport.