Will invite T.N. CM for Alanganallur jallikattu, says Minister Moorthy

All of the Supreme Court’s guidelines will be adhered to during the event, the Minister said; the Madurai Collector said elaborate bandobust arrangements would be in place for spectators

Minister P. Moorthy, Minister participated in the ground-breaking ceremony for the jallikattu to be held at Alanganallur in Madurai on Friday | Photo Credit: ASHOK R

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister will be invited to come and witness the famous jallikattu in Alanganallur in Madurai district, said P. Moorthy, TN Minister for Commercial Taxes and Registration P. Moorthy on Friday.

The world famous jallikattu, which will be held here with much fanfare as a part of the Pongal celebrations, will attract bulls and tamers from far and near.

After a sort of lull over the last two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this year, there will not be too many restrictions for members of the public who will come to view the event. However, the participating bulls and the tamers will be subject to screening and the guidelines of the Supreme Court will be strictly complied with, the Minister told reporters, after participating in the ground-breaking ceremony held at the venue.

Mr. Moorthy said that Minister for Sports Development and Youth Welfare Udhayanidhi Stalin had already given his consent to participate in the event. “We will invite our CM for the event in person,” he replied to a query.

The Minister said that the jallikattu organisers would give a car to the winner and another prize, also a car, would be presented to the best bull in the event. He said that all participating bulls would get a prize this season.

Apart from Alanganallur, the jallikattu will be held in Avaniapuram and Palamedu too, in Madurai district.

The Minister later inspected the vaadivasal and also the bulls being screened near the venue by the Animal Husbandry Department officials.

Madurai District Collector Aneesh Shekhar, DIG of Police (Madurai Range) R. Ponni, Superintendent of Police Shiva Prasad, Sholavandan MLA A. Venkatesan and local body representatives were present.

The Collector said that tokens would be issued to the participants in a transparent manner as well as online. Elaborate bandobust arrangements would be in place for the spectators and care would be taken not to harm any bulls. The guidelines are very clear and those who comply with them alone would get to participate, the officials added.