The jallikattu event at Palamedu in Madurai commenced on Friday morning, amidst COVID-19 restrictions.
A total of 163 bulls were released through the vaadivasal (entry point to the arena) at the end of two rounds. Bull tamers were allowed in batches of 75, after going through a basic health check-up. All players and bull owners were allowed to participate only after they tested negative for COVID-19.
Revenue Minister R.B. Udhayakumar flagged off the event at 8 a.m. District Collector T. Anbalagan was also present.
For around 20 minutes after the event was inaugurated, village residents crowded the arena along with the players, with a total disregard for COVID-19 distancing norms. The spectators’ galleries were packed, with poor compliance to personal distancing norms. Most of the spectators did not wear face masks.
Occasionally, bulls returned from the collection point to the arena and at a point, even three bulls were present in the arena.
