HC lifts ban on Kambala

The Karnataka High Court on Monday lifted the ban on Kambala sport (Buffalo Race) in Dakshina Kannada District.

According to the HC, the Kambala sport needs to be held in the presence of Tehsildar and the police inspector of the jurisdiction.

The Karnataka HC also gave instructions to the authorities to prevent all kinds of cruelty meted out to the animals.

Earlier, the Kambala sport was banned in mid-November by the district administration of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada after the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) pressed for it.
The HC had ordered the state government to express its point of view regarding the sport.

The Assistant Solicitor General representing the Central government stated that cruelty to buffaloes in Kambala sport was lesser when compared to the torture meted out to bulls in Jallikattu that was observed in Tamil Nadu.

Following these arguments, the HC had stated that the degree of cruelty to buffaloes was less in Kambala sport.

Kambala is a traditional sport in which pairs of buffaloes are made to run one after the other in paddy fields filled with slush.

The winning pair is showered with rewards. It's a form of entertainment for the rural people. The sport is held annually between the period of November-March.