Mumbai:
Dahi Handi celebrations claimed the lives of two folks in Maharashtra, as a seven-year-old boy died after a brick column collapsed on him in Mumbai, whereas a lady was crushed to loss of life underneath an iron body in Pune, officers stated on Saturday.
Apart from, at the very least 212 ‘Govindas’ have been injured — 168 in Mumbai and 44 others in neighbouring Thane metropolis — through the formation of human pyramids as a part of the celebrations.
Dahi Handi, which is a part of the Janmashtami pageant that marks the start of Lord Krishna, is being celebrated throughout the state with conventional fervour.
As a part of the custom, ‘Govindas’ or contributors kind multi-tier human pyramids to interrupt Dahi Handis (clay pots stuffed with curd) suspended mid-air.
In Mumbai, the boy’s loss of life of the boy occurred at Ekta Welfare Society at Chikuwadi in Malvani round 3 pm.
The tragedy befell when a gaggle of kids was celebrating Dahi Handi on their very own. They’d tied one finish of the rope, which held the handi, to a tree and the opposite finish to a brick column of a ground-floor construction.
As the kids tried to interrupt the handi, the brick column collapsed, burying seven-year-old Rudra Kadam underneath the particles, an official stated.
The boy sustained crucial head accidents within the collapse. Bystanders instantly pulled him out of the rubble and rushed him to the close by Malvani Basic Hospital, the place medical doctors declared him lifeless, he stated.
Ward employees and police personnel have been mobilised following the incident.
In Pune, Salma Salauddin Pathan, a resident of the Outdated Sangavi space in Pimpri Chinchwad, died after a short lived iron construction erected to assist a stack of loudspeakers for a Dahi Handi occasion collapsed on her on Friday night time, police stated.
Staff have been dismantling the iron body after the occasion organised by the Vighnaharta Mandal concluded, and a heavy portion fell on Pathan. She sustained a severe head damage and was rushed to a hospital, the place medical doctors declared her lifeless, they stated.
Pathan’s son was an office-bearer of the organising mandal, and her household declined to lodge a criticism towards the organisers and urged the police to not register a case on their very own, police stated.
An unintended loss of life report was registered, and the police are trying into the collapse of the construction, an official stated.
The lady’s loss of life occurred amid an intense debate in Pune over using high-decibel sound techniques, colloquially referred to as ‘DJs’, throughout festivals, sparked by native activist Vidyanand Bapat.
In the meantime, a complete of 168 ‘Govindas’ have been injured through the celebrations in components of Mumbai, in keeping with info supplied by numerous authorities and Brihanmumbai Municipal Company (BMC-run) hospitals until 6 pm.
Of the 168 injured, 29 have been admitted, 81 are underneath therapy, and 58 have been discharged.
Amongst particular person hospitals, KEM Hospital in Parel reported the very best variety of injured Govindas at 33, adopted by Rajawadi Hospital (20) in Ghatkopar and Nair Hospital (17) in Bombay Central.
Dahi Handi occasions organised by politicians in Mumbai and neighbouring areas have emerged as main points of interest through the years, with large prizes, celeb appearances and leisure programmes.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited Dahi Handi occasions at Mumbai’s Worli, Dadar and Ghatkopar, the place he urged residents, notably kids, to keep away from dependancy, and stated these celebrations ought to assist strengthen the state’s ‘Drug-Free Maharashtra’ marketing campaign.
In Worli, the CM symbolically broke the handi to mark the start of the celebrations.
He stated the pageant was not merely a celebration however mirrored Maharashtra’s custom, the braveness of its youth and the spirit of teamwork.
Talking in Thane, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde emphasised the necessity for security over record-breaking human pyramids throughout Dahi Handi.
“Break the pot, however shield life. Do not forget that your dad and mom are ready for you at house. Each Govinda should guarantee their teammates don’t get injured,” he stated on the large celebrations at Tembhi Naka.
The police stepped up safety throughout Mumbai, deploying heavy bandobast in delicate areas for the pageant.
Based on a BMC launch issued on Friday, greater than 100 beds have been saved prepared at civic hospitals within the metropolis and suburbs for treating injured Govindas.
Well being officers and employees have been deployed in three shifts at civic hospitals, whereas the services have been directed to maintain ample shares of injections, medicines and surgical materials prepared, the discharge stated.
In neighbouring Thane, which attracts large crowds through the pageant, 44 ‘Govindas’ have been admitted to hospitals as a result of accidents, a civic official stated.
In the meantime, amid a rising debate over using high-decibel loudspeakers through the upcoming Ganeshotsav in Pune, 31 outstanding Ganapati mandals within the metropolis got here collectively to have fun a ‘DJ-free’ Dahi Handi.
(Aside from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is printed from a syndicated feed.)
