Amid the sharp spike in the covid cases, the MK Stalin-led Tamil Nadu government on Monday issued guidelines for Jallikattu events. According to the order issued by the authorities, only 150 spectators or 50 percent of seating capacity (whichever is less) will be allowed to attend the event.
The guidelines allow only 300 bull tamers to participate in the event and made negative Covid result mandatory. According to new guidelines, no more than 150 spectators will be allowed and has capped the occupancy at 50 per cent. The guidelines also state that those attending the event will either have to be full vaccination or need to show negative RT-PCR test report (not older than 48 hours).
The state government has also requested people to watch the event on television and avoid mass gathering amid rising Covid cases in the state. Jallikattu is conducted as part of Mattu Pongal, the third day of the four-day-long harvest festival Pongal. The Tamil word ‘mattu’ means bull, and the third day of Pongal is dedicated to cattle, a key partner in the process of farming.
The Madras High Court had ordered the Tamil Nadu government to ensure that bulls of native breed are allowed to participate in the Jallikattu events and not foreign or hybrid bulls.
State University semester exams in Tamil Nadu slated for later this month have been deferred indefinitely, the government said on Monday. Higher Education Minister K Ponmudi said the decision has been taken in consultation with Chief Minister M K Stalin who was keen about students’ welfare. “All university exams are being deferred indefinitely due to the surging covid numbers. The revised schedule will be announced later,” he told reporters here.
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Presently, colleges are closed for study holidays and if there are complaints of any institution remaining open, they will be asked to close down, he added. Amid a steep rise in its coronavirus cases over the past few days, Tamil Nadu on Sunday reported 12,895 new cases while its active infections touched 51,335.
With a steep rise in coronavirus positive cases and the highly transmissible Omicron variant, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Monday launched the precaution dose against COVID-19 for healthcare workers, frontline workers and those above 60 years of age with co-morbidities in the state.
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