Advertisement

Dahi Handi participants to get insurance worth ₹10 lakh: Dahi Handi Utsav coordination committee

The Dahi Handi groups have been asked to form the same height of human pyramids which will be formed while practising

Dahi Handi participants to get insurance worth ₹10 lakh: Dahi Handi Utsav coordination committee
SHARES

Every year, Dahi Handi is celebrated where many of the participants (Govindas) get injured while some lose their lives during the celebration. Considering the need of the hour, Dahi Handi Samanvay Samiti, a government recognised umbrella body of Govinda mandals in Mumbai, asked its members to follow safety rules set by the Bombay High Court (HC) and to get a mandatory insurance cover up to ₹10 lakh.

Bala Padelkar, president of Dahi Handi Samanvay Samiti was speaking in a press conference held in Mumbai.

Across the state, there are more than 1.5k Govinda mandals and on the day of Dahi Handi festival, nearly 250-300 participants get injured and some die. In order to keep these participants safe, many Govinda mandals, started issuing insurance to protect participants since 2003.

Between 2003 and 2015, participants were getting insurance of up to ₹1.5 lakh. In 2016, the insurance cost was increased to ₹2.5 lakh and post-2017, the cost of insurance reached up to ₹10 lakh.

He said that DHSS had asked all the participants to follow safety rules that include wearing helmets, harness belts, chest-guards, knee protectors etc. It has also asked the Govinda mandals to not involve boys and girls below the age of 14.

Meanwhile, DHSS has appealed to the Supreme Court to declare Dahi Handi as an adventure sport. 

RELATED TOPICS
Advertisement
MumbaiLive would like to send you latest news updates