The Jallikattu season is off to a resounding start in Pudukottai

A cheering crowd of about 5,000 people watched the season’s first jallikattu at Thatchankurichi village in Pudukottai district on Sunday as a total of 481 bulls charged into the arena one by one and 210 tamers in batches vied to rein them in. A total of 74 bull tamers were injured, but officials said none of them was serious.
The event, inaug urated by ministers S Regupathy and Siva V Meyyanathan, was organised by Don Bosco Youth Centre of St Mary’s church at the village located near Gandarvakkottai.
Around 500 bulls were registered by people from Pudukottai, Trichy, Thanjavur, Madurai and Dindigul districts for participation. After medical examinations, only 481 were permitted to e nter the vaadivasal, the narrow entrance leading to the arena where bull tamers awaited.
Health officials said that all bull tamers, bull owners and organisers were permitted only a fter ensuring they were vaccinated twice and had a negative RT-PCR report generated within the last two days. “We had collected 360 samples, and the results for all the samples were negative.
We mobilised three doctors at the venue to treat the injured tamers,” Dr B Kalaivani, deputy director of health services said. A veterinary team from the animal husbandry department inspected the sharpness of horns (to avoid fatal injuries for the tamers) and to identify the presence of external agents if any applied to the bull’s body to provoke the animal.
Ambulances for tamers and bulls were at the venue. Among the 74 injured, 10 were referred to Pudukottai government hospital, and all were stable, police said.
Thr ee tamers sustained fractures. “Interest among bull owners and spectators to visit the arena was very high compared to last year,” A Francis, Thatchankurichi jallika ttu event organiser, said.
The best bull tamer prize was bagged by Yogeshwaran of Thennagudi in Pudukottai district, while the best bull prize was received by Rajkumar of Maruthankudi in Thanjavu r district. They were given a bike each as a prize. Former health minister and Viralimalai MLA C Vijayabaskar’s bulls Vellai Komban and Karuppu Komban bagged a bicycle and cot as prizes.