Wrestling contest big draw at Khandobha Jatara

Kamareddy: Pedda Edgi village of Jukkal mandal in Kamareddy district hosted a wrestling match on Sunday to mark the Khandobha Jatara on the occasion of Yalamasa festival. Apart from Telangana, wrestlers from Maharashtra and Karnataka also took part in the completion.

Every year on the occasion of festival, devotees come in large numbers from the border villages of Maharashtra and Karnataka and pray to the god Khandoba to protect their crops and make health and economic gain. Home-made pastries were offered to the god and eaten by the whole family under the shadow of trees.

It is customary to hold wrestling matches in Khandoba jatara. Wrestling players from the States of Karnataka and Maharashtra eagerly flocked to the village to compete.

While cricket and kabaddi are popular all over the world, wrestling is popular in the Jukkal region due to the Khandoba fair. Wrestling competitions continue from Datta Jayanti to Ugadi. Thousands of people from different parts of the country come to watch the wrestling matches organised on the occasion of Yalamasa festival.

The ground was packed with people who came to watch the matches. The first round winner was given a prize of Rs 50 and a coconut. The winner of the final was awarded a cash prize of Rs 5,000 by the wrestling organisers.

Mandal RSS president Gangu Nayak, Raghunath, village elders Venkat Gowd, Vijay Patil, Vittal Patil, Sandeep Nayak and others were present on the occasion.