Surprise Rekla races held in Kovai, Tirupur
While their counterparts in the Southern districts had difficulty in organising jallikattu, bull owners in Coimbatore and Tirupur region took the police by surprise by organising Rekla races. They were held at Senjerimalai (in Coimbatore) and Gudimangalam near Udumalpet (in Tirupur District). The sport were organised by the Tamil Nadu Rekla Club (TNRC).
By : migrator
Update: 2017-01-16 19:34 GMT
Coimbatore
Close to 1,000 pairs of Kangayam and Naatumadu bulls began gathering at the Maala temple at Pethappampatti in Tirupur District from 7 pm onwards on Sunday. It went on till Monday afternoon. The organisers and race enthusiasts got together a few dozen bulls that were returning to their native villages in the early hours of Monday.
When the news spread that the race will be held, even carts that had crossed the venue returned with enthusiasm. In minutes, hundreds of racers and those who accompanied the cattle thronged on either side of the road at Senjerimalai and the race began.
The galloping bulls left their hoof marks on the tar road as the enthusiasts cheered the bulls and those on those carts by shouting and whistling. A few pairs of bulls and calves took part in the race held on the Udumalpet to Palladam Road and on the Udumalpet to Pollachi Road.
As Monday’s event was not a planned one and also as the organisers had not obtained prior police permission no protection was there on roads. But the organisers, as a precautionary measure blocked the vehicles when the bulls raced, to avoid injury to passers-by. Those who covered a distance of 200 m (junior category) and 300 m (senior category) in the fastest time were adjudged winners.
“We did not participate in the race for money or prize but only for the love of the sport. It’s been two years since our bulls raced but the spirit of the sport has not faded,” J. Arun Balakumar an IT professional from Poolavadi near Udumalpet said.
Earlier that day the TNRC members and Rekla enthusiasts took out a procession at Senjerimalai raising slogans urging the Supreme Court to revoke the ban on Rekla race and jallikattu. They also urged the government to ban People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), before organising the race.
TNRC president RS Thirumugam who led the protests said that this was just the beginning of the resurfacing of Rekla race. He added that their club and other enthusiasts who were organising the sport in Pollachi and Udumalpet would go ahead with periodical races.
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