Restrictions on Dahi Handi festival on the occasion of Gokulashtami

Dahi handi is a festival of Hindus held on the occasion of the birthday of Lord Krishna - it is also known as Gokulashtami or Janmashtami. The dahi handi is all about a human pyramid with the teams trying to lay hands on the prize which is kept in a earthen pot which has to be broken.
This festival is a rage in Mumbai and the prize money runs into lakhs of rupees.
However, the very concept of a human ladder is risky and accidents do happen. It has been made popular through song and dance sequences by renowned Bollywood actors with the dahi-handi theme. A question arose on the height of the human pyramid and the minimum age for participants. The Supreme Court has to, now, pass an order on these aspects.
The Maharashtra Government had sought a clarification as to whether a youth below 18-years can participate in a `Dahi-Handi` ritual and whether the human pyramid formation could be in excess of 20 feet.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 10 August 2016.

The High Court had issued an order on August 11, 2014 indicating that the height of human pyramids should not exceed 20 feet and children below 18 years should not be allowed to participate in the Dahi-Handi function. But, the authorities were not following the order. Therefore, based on a a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), the High Court pulled up the government for its failure to obtain clarification from the apex court in this regard.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org


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