DINDIGUL: More than 34 persons were injured in the jallikattu held at Pugaiyilaipatti village near here as part of St. Sebastian church festival on Wednesday.
A majority of the injured were spectators and those visiting the village for personal work, as the security measures made for the event were poor and arrangements haphazard.
The prime road in the village was converted into jallikattu arena and the exit point was facing the village entrance. All the people had to cross the road to go to their farms and houses. Moreover, the jallikattu venue was not properly fenced. Only half of the area was covered by metal fence and the remaining area with tractors and vans parked on roadside.
A ferocious bull jumped through the gap between two vehicles and ran amuck along lanes, injuring several people. With no barricades, spectators stood on the field and in the gaps between vehicles, facing a grave threat from the bulls. Another bull ran into the crowd, injuring three persons.
With no proper exit, the bulls ran through private farms and lanes. Bull owners had a tough time searching for their animals.
The poor response and scant respect shown by the event organisers irked many bull owners and tamers who were keen on participating in the event. The tamers from other districts were not entertained properly.
Even a well-recognised bull tamer, P. Silambarasan (23) of Alanganallur, was initially denied permission to participate in the event. When he produced the certificate issued to him by the Madurai Collector, the organisers curtly replied that they would not recognise certificates issued by other District Collectors.
“I tamed 14 bulls in Alanganallur jallikattu this time and won a Royal Enfield bike. The Madurai Collector issued ‘best tamer’ certificate to me. But the organisers did not recognise it initially. Later, they registered my name, gave me a number and T-shirt to participate,” said Mr. Silambarasan.
He won prizes and medals by taming three bulls in the event. A total of 410 bulls were let loose in the jallikattu.
