MUMBAI: Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said that the Maharashtra government will not grant permission for this year’s Dahi Handi festival that falls on August 30. This is the second consecutive year the celebrations have been cancelled owing to Covid-19.
During a meeting, the CM requested the festival organisers to prioritise public health amid an ongoing pandemic and suggested that large scale public celebrations should be avoided. “We all have the same feelings about the festival, but today’s priority is saving people’s lives. For the past one-and-a-half years, we have been fighting against Covid-19 and hence, we have to follow some restrictions. Some people speak against the curbs. Instead of agitating against the government, they should fight against Covid-19,” Thackeray said. He added that the NITI Aayog’s recent report on the third wave’s possibility and the number of ICUs required has triggered the concern for Maharashtra.
Dahi Handi festival is celebrated to mark the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna. Teams of young boys and girls form human pyramids that participants scale to break an earthen pot, hanged at a certain height, filled with dahi (yogurt).