Read to Know More on Thai Pongal and Jallikattu
Jallikattu is a famous sport which is practiced in various parts of Tamil Nadu (a southern state in India) as a part of Pongal celebrations.
Let’s have a quick glimpse of Pongal
Thai Pongal, commonly known as the “
Harvest Festival of India”, is celebrated to worship the Sun God and thank the nature. According to the Tamil Calendar, the month of harvest (January-February) is named as “
Thai” and these are the months when essential ingredients of the state i.e. rice & turmeric are harvested & Pongal means “
to boil”; hence the festival got its name as Thai Pongal. This year it is going to be celebrated from
January 15, 2019 – January 19, 2019.
Pongal Celebrations
AMAZING FACTS ABOUT PONGAL
- This festival marks the start of Sun’s six-month-long journey northwards (Uttarayan) and the day of God begins after a six-month-long night.
- According to a legend, Lord Krishna lifted the Govardhan Mountain on his little finger to protect the people and cattle from the angry rain God, Indra.
- Many people go to sacred rivers or lakes and bathe with thanksgiving to the sun.
The Famous Sport, Jallikattu
Jallikattu (Pic Source: Live Law)
- Traditionally Jallikattu is a breeding process where the bulls mate with the cows. After a few months of mating and freedom, the bulls are needed again by the farmers but they resist. Farmers tie a bounty called 'Jallikattu' which is cash coins (jalli) tied in a pouch (kattu) to encourage & reward the ones who capture their bulls for them. This is how it all began.
- In this sport, a bull is released into a crowd of people, and multiple human participants attempt to grab the large hump on the bull's back with both arms and hang on to that whereas the bull makes an attempt to flee. Participants hold the hump for as long as attainable, attempting to bring the bull to a stop.
- It is more than 2,000 years old and considered to be one of the oldest sports still practiced in the modern era. However, The Animal Welfare Board of India filed a case in the Supreme Court of India for an outright ban on jallikattu because of the cruelty to animals and the threat to public safety involved. The Supreme Court banned the sport in the year 2014.
- However, after the ban there were statewide protests, shops shut and people marched on roads to call off the ban. The protesters believed that the sport represents Tamil Nadu's culture and identity and a ban on it is seen as a direct attack on the state's traditions.
In my opinion, Jallikattu should not be banned as due to its banning the native breed of cows will extinct.
- Jallikattu bull’s area unit is used for breeding the cows and therefore will increase their breed. If Jallikattu does not happen these bulls will be sold and eventually they will be sent to the slaughterhouse. At the tip, male won't be ready to serve the feminine and therefore breeding won't happen.
- At this point, companies like German Semen Company will sell and induce Jersey and Friesian semen into our native cow. They want to create cash by marketing North American nation western bovine, bull semen, medicine, etc and our bulls area unit in their approach.
I feel Government should find out a way in which people are able to enjoy the sport without any harm to lives as well as there is no extinction of a native breed of cows.
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