- A.M. Sudhakar
- For BBC Tamil
The BBC has investigated the true nature of a ban on Vanganari Jallikattu near Vazhappadi in Tamil Nadu’s Salem district, amid widespread reports that it was being held in violation of the ban. What’s going on there?
In the last few years, Chinna Nayakkan Palayam near Vazhappadi in Salem district, some villages including Kottavadi, Gopalapuram, Singipuram and Ranganur used to catch the Vanganari from the forest during the Pongal festival and decorate it in the evening and then tie it with a rope and let it run all over the village.
Some of the villagers in the area believe that if this is done, nothing untoward will happen in the town and if the fox wakes up on Pongal’s birthday, the agriculture will be prosperous and the harvest will be good that year. Based on this belief Vanganari Jallikkattu was going on in the old days.
But for the past seven years the Forest Department has been warning that catching or harassing foxes under the Wildlife Conservation Act carries a maximum sentence of seven years in prison and a fine.
Following this, some villagers stopped the practice.
Despite this warning, some villagers in Vazhappadi have been criticizing Narip Pongal every year.
Villagers in the Chinnamanayakkanpalayam area caught a fox from a nearby field on the 17th yesterday.
Then the fox is taken in procession to the dentist. It is also believed that the fox was carried on a palanquin for public viewing through the main streets from the Mariamman temple area.
What happened?
The villagers tied the fox and carried it down the street
We spoke to some villagers in the Chinnamanayakkanpalayam area about this. They shared a lot of information that did not reveal their identities.
“Our belief is that some journalists have misrepresented the belief of our villagers that the fox is worshiped as a deity and wakes up in the face of the fox as Jallikkattu.
In previous years the bulls were kept and conducted. There were false reports that Jallikkattu was banned from running with foxes at the time of the ban.
Following this, the forest department warns us every year that catching foxes is a crime under forest law and imposes fines.
The villagers also said that they would not allow journalists to cover the Nariyatta Pongal festival as it was misrepresented as “Nari Jallikkattu”.
Town control
“It is not allowed to film this event on mobile phones. The Tamil Nadu government should order the forest department to support the villagers who worship the fox deity from now on,” they demanded.
We spoke to BBC Tamil Vazhappadi forest ranger Thuraimurugan about this.
Squirrel growing like a baby at home
“Such incidents were banned when the Wildlife Conservation Act was passed in 1972. In the old days, foxes were caught and roped around the town.
“People in this area come and catch the fox and worship it as a deity in the evening. The people of the village worship the bound fox. We have received information in our investigation that it was left in the captured area again,” he said.
But even doing so under the Wildlife Conservation Act is wrong. The Forest Department is conducting an investigation and taking legal action against those involved.
The villagers do not go to the forest in search of foxes in this area. They are easily caught in the small draft and field mound in the area where the villagers live.
Speaking to those in the field, it has been revealed that the Urmas usually have a habit of taking the captured fox back to where it was caught and leaving it after the worship is over.
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