Coimbatore, January 28: Despite protests, Jallikattu- the bull-taming festival was held in Coimbatore on a grand scale on Sunday. A total of 800 bulls from all over the state participated in the event. Stage was all set for city's first ever bull taming sport of Jallikattu on Sunday. As per reports, the event was being jointly organised by the City Corporation and Omkar Foundation and was flagged off by Municipal Administration Minister SP Velumani.

According to PTI reports, district collector TN Hariharan, who inspected the 25 acre arena informed that about 750 bulls and 500 tamers had registered till Sunday afternoon to participate in the event. Reports state that Jallikattu- the sport synonymous with Pongal festivities was held in Madurai and Sivaganga districts in the second week of this month. The event was held amid tight security.

According to a report by The Hindu, about 25 bull tamers were injured in a jallikttu held at Purathakudi in Manaparai taluk on Saturday. The report further informed that a total of 197 tamers were let inside after medical tests while 19 tamers were sent back after they failed the tests. The officials reported that there were 4,000 spectators, including 500 women for the Jallikattu event.

Following a Supreme Court order in May 2014, Jallikattu was banned in Tamil Nadu. The state government last year brought an ordinance to facilitate its conduct amid massive protests at Marina Beach in Chennai and several other places across the state.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 28, 2018 06:17 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).