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26/11/23 13:10 PM IST

Bengaluru hosts Kambala races

In News
  • During the weekend of November 25 and 26, 160 pairs of buffaloes and their jockeys are set to race in the specially made slush tracks for Kambala races, being held at City Palace Grounds in Bengaluru.
Kambala
  • It is a folk sport practised in coastal Karnataka districts, especially in regions where Tulu speakers form a majority.
  • Earlier, races would be organised by various families and groups in the slushy paddy fields, in the days after the harvest.
  • More recently, the Kambala Samithi hosts weekly events from the end of November till the first half of April at various venues across Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts.
  • Kambala is a prestige event for many families, especially from the Bunt community in the coastal regions.
  • Pairs of buffaloes are groomed by them around the year in hopes of winning a major Kambala event or other races.
Categories in  Kambala
  • Kambala is generally held under four categories.
  • First is Negilu (plough) category, where lighter ploughs are used to tie buffaloes for the race. The event is for entry-level buffalo pairs, participating in their first Kambala race.
  • The second is Hagga (rope), where buffaloes are raced by jockeys with just a rope tied to both buffaloes.
  • Adda Halage is the third category, in which participants stand over a horizontal plank which is dragged by buffaloes. Unlike Hagga and Negilu, where jockeys run behind the animals, buffaloes drag the jockeys in Adda Halage.
  • Kane Halage is the fourth category where a wooden plank is tied to buffaloes.
  • The plank, on which jockeys stand, has two holes through which water gushes out as the plank is dragged along the slush tracks. The height to which water splashes determines the winner of the event.
Banned by The Supreme Court
  • Several organisations, including People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), had filed a petition against all traditional sporting events on allegations of animal abuse.
  • The grouse against Kambala was that the noses of the buffaloes were tied with a rope and the animals were whipped continuously during the course of the race, which amounted to cruelty. The SC, which heard these petitions, ruled to ban Jallikattu, Kambala and bullock cart racing in 2014.
  • In January 2016, the Environment Ministry issued a notification where an exception was made, “that bulls might be continued to be trained as performing animals at events such as Jallikattu in Tamil Nadu and Bullock Cart Races in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Punjab, Haryana, Kerala and Gujarat in the manner…or practice traditionally under the customs or as part of culture in any part of the country”.
  • This was in recognition of the customs and cultural heritage of various communities.
  • An exception, however, was made subject to certain conditions seeking to reduce the pain and suffering of bulls while being used in such sports
  • Historically, members of the Koraga community faced discrimination before the festival kicked off. Koragas, who were considered ‘untouchable’ were ill-treated during the course of Kambala in the past.
Source- Indian Express

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