Dahi Handi celebrations: Woman dies in Pune, 22 govindas injured in Mumbai

Dahi Handi celebrations tuned tragic in Maharashtra, with a 45-year-old woman crushed to death after an iron structure collapsed during dismantling in Pune. In Mumbai, 22 govindas sustained injuries while forming human pyramids, with 21 later discharged.

Mumbai: A 45-year-old woman was crushed to death under an iron structure in Pune, while at least 22 ‘govindas’ sustained injuries during Dahi Handi celebrations in Mumbai, officials said on Saturday.

Salma Salauddin Pathan, a resident of the Old Sangavi area in the Pimpri Chinchwad suburb of Pune, died after a temporary iron frame erected for a Dahi Handi event collapsed on her while it was being dismantled on Friday night, police said.

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Workers were dismantling the iron frame after the event organised by the Vighnaharta Mandal concluded when a heavy portion fell on Pathan. She sustained a serious head injury and was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared her dead, they said.

Pathan’s son was an office-bearer of the organising mandal, and her family declined to lodge a complaint against the organisers and urged the police not to register a case on their own, police said.

An accidental death report has been registered, and the police are looking into the collapse of the structure, an official said.

In Mumbai, 22 ‘govindas’ who were part of human pyramids during the Dahi Handi celebrations sustained injuries, civic officials said.

Of them, 21 were discharged from hospitals after treatment, they said.

Dahi Handi, which is part of the Janmashtami festival that marks the birth of Lord Krishna, saw enthusiastic participation by revellers.

The festival was celebrated with traditional fervour and gaiety in Mumbai and other parts of the state.

As part of the celebrations, ‘govindas’ form multi-tiered human pyramids to break ‘Dahi Handis’ (clay pots filled with curd) suspended in the air.

As many as 20 ‘govindas’ were admitted to hospitals in the island city, and all of them were discharged after treatment, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials said.

One ‘govinda’ was injured in an eastern suburb and was discharged after treatment, while another in a western suburb is currently undergoing treatment, they said.

In view of the festival, the police have stepped up security across the city, deploying heavy bandobast in sensitive areas.

The BMC has said it has made extensive arrangements to treat injured ‘govindas’.

Sixteen civic-run suburban hospitals and Lokmanya Tilak Municipal General Hospital in Sion, KEM Hospital in Parel and Nair Hospital in Mumbai Central have more than 100 beds ready for their treatment, the civic body stated in a release on Friday.