Janmashtami Celebrations 2018: 36 Govindas Injured During Dahi Handi In Mumbai

Mumbai, September 3: In an unfortunate incident, 36 'govindas' have been injured during Dahi Handi celebrations on the occasion of Janmashtami in Mumbai. Three injured govindas have been admitted to KEM hospital, Dadar, while one govinda is taken to JJ Hospital. One person also received injuries during dahi handi celebrations in Thane. He has been admitted to nearby hospital.

However, the Maharashtra government has not yet has not fixed the height limit for human pyramids. The Bombay High Court in 2017 had left it to the state government to decide the maximum height for the pyramids during the dahi handi. The court had also upheld a previous order, in which organisers were directed to ensure the safety of the govindas.

In 2014, social activist Swati Patil filed a petition in the Bombay High Court to regulate the height of the human pyramids during dahi handi. On August 11, 2014, the high court capped the height to 20 feet and also ordered that the children below 18 years could not participate in the forming pyramids.

The Maharashtra government challenged this order in the Supreme Court in the same year. The top court upheld the high court’s order. However, in 2016, the state government filed another review petition in the apex court, in which it assured that it had taken several measures to ensure the safety of govindas and thus the height cap should be relaxed. The top court sent the case back to the Bombay High Court for the new hearing. The high court then refused to cap the height of the human pyramids.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 03, 2018 02:52 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).