The ban on animal sacrifice during Mailarlingeshwar Jatra at Mailapur village in Yadgir taluk on Monday was violated with several devotees flinging live goats at the ‘pallaki’ of the presiding deity during the procession.
Despite the district administration setting up checkposts at different points to prevent devotees from transporting goats to the jatra, and engage in the ritual of flinging them at the ‘pallaki’ as part of the festival, several devotees managed to slip past the checkposts with the animals.
Meanwhile, some officials said that till Monday evening, more than a 1,000 goats had been rescued from devotees. The animals were handed over to the Animal Husbandry Department and would be auctioned later, they added.
Camps
Several pilgrims from different parts of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh thronged Mailapur and put up makeshift camps on the hillock, on which the temple is situated. Special dishes were prepared on the occasion; they were shared with devotees participating in the jatra.
The North Eastern Karnataka Road Transport Corporation operated more than 80 special bus services from Yadgir, Surpur, Shahpur and Gulbarga, and from Mahabubnagar, Kurnool, Narayanpet and Kodangal in Andhra Pradesh to enable the pilgrims to participate in the jatra.
