Two killed, 212 injured in Maharashtra Dahi Handi festivities

Two people lost their lives and over 200 ‘Govindas’ were injured during Dahi Handi celebrations in Maharashtra. A seven-year-old boy died in Mumbai after a brick column collapsed, while a woman in Pune was killed when an iron frame fell on her.

Mumbai: Dahi Handi celebrations claimed the lives of two persons in Maharashtra, as a seven-year-old boy died after a brick column collapsed on him in Mumbai, while a woman was crushed to death under an iron frame in Pune, officials said on Saturday.

Besides, at least 212 ‘Govindas’ were injured — 168 in Mumbai and 44 others in neighbouring Thane city — during the formation of human pyramids as part of the celebrations.

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Dahi Handi, which is part of the Janmashtami festival that marks the birth of Lord Krishna, is being celebrated across the state with traditional fervour.

As part of the tradition, ‘Govindas’ or participants form multi-tier human pyramids to break Dahi Handis (clay pots filled with curd) suspended mid-air.

In Mumbai, the death of the boy occurred at Ekta Welfare Society at Chikuwadi in Malvani around 3 pm.

The tragedy took place when a group of children was celebrating Dahi Handi on their own. They had tied one end of the rope, which held the handi, to a tree and the other end to a brick column of a ground-floor structure.

As the children tried to break the handi, the brick column collapsed, burying seven-year-old Rudra Kadam under the debris, an official said.

The boy sustained critical head injuries in the collapse. Bystanders immediately pulled him out of the rubble and rushed him to the nearby Malvani General Hospital, where doctors declared him dead, he said.

Ward staff and police personnel were mobilised following the incident.

In Pune, Salma Salauddin Pathan, a resident of the Old Sangavi area in Pimpri Chinchwad, died after a temporary iron structure erected to support a stack of loudspeakers for a Dahi Handi event collapsed on her on Friday night, police said.

Workers were dismantling the iron frame after the event organised by the Vighnaharta Mandal concluded, and 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 was registered, and the police are looking into the collapse of the structure, an official said.

The woman’s death occurred amid an intense debate in Pune over the use of high-decibel sound systems, colloquially known as ‘DJs’, during festivals, sparked by local activist Vidyanand Bapat.

Meanwhile, a total of 168 ‘Govindas’ were injured during the celebrations in parts of Mumbai, according to information provided by various government and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC-run) hospitals till 6 pm.

Of the 168 injured, 29 have been admitted, 81 are under treatment, and 58 were discharged.

Among individual hospitals, KEM Hospital in Parel reported the highest number of injured Govindas at 33, followed by Rajawadi Hospital (20) in Ghatkopar and Nair Hospital (17) in Bombay Central.

Dahi Handi events organised by politicians in Mumbai and neighbouring areas have emerged as major attractions over the years, with huge prizes, celebrity appearances and entertainment programmes.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited Dahi Handi events at Mumbai’s Worli, Dadar and Ghatkopar, where he urged citizens, particularly youngsters, to stay away from addiction, and said these celebrations should help strengthen the state’s ‘Drug-Free Maharashtra’ campaign.

In Worli, the CM symbolically broke the handi to mark the beginning of the celebrations.

He said the festival was not merely a celebration but reflected Maharashtra’s tradition, the courage of its youth and the spirit of teamwork.

Speaking in Thane, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde emphasised the need for safety over record-breaking human pyramids during Dahi Handi.

“Break the pot, but protect life. Remember that your parents are waiting for you at home. Every govinda must ensure their teammates do not get injured,” he said at the massive celebrations at Tembhi Naka.

The police stepped up security across Mumbai, deploying heavy bandobast in sensitive areas for the festival.

According to a BMC release issued on Friday, more than 100 beds were kept ready at civic hospitals in the city and suburbs for treating injured Govindas.

Health officers and staff have been deployed in three shifts at civic hospitals, while the facilities have been directed to keep adequate stocks of injections, medicines and surgical material ready, the release said.

In neighbouring Thane, which draws huge crowds during the festival, 44 ‘Govindas’ were admitted to hospitals due to injuries, a civic official said.

Meanwhile, amid a growing debate over the use of high-decibel loudspeakers during the upcoming Ganeshotsav in Pune, 31 prominent Ganapati mandals in the city came together to celebrate a ‘DJ-free’ Dahi Handi.