Almost 500 people were injured at the stone throwing festival in India

The number of injured at the Gotmar Mela stone throwing festival in central India was 462 people. This strange holiday has been around for several hundred years, and there are known cases of death among its participants. There were no casualties this year, but ten people were seriously injured. The "celebrants" dispersed so much that street riots began.

(6 photos in total)

Source: Indian Times

The Gotmar Mela Stone Wars take place in Central India every year. For several centuries, residents of the villages of Pandhurna and Savargaon, located on different banks of the river Jaan, annually come ashore armed with stones. The cruel festival is associated with an ancient legend.

Since then, residents of the two villages have been throwing stones every year in memory of this remarkable event. During the festival, villagers gather on opposite banks of the Jaan and wait for someone to dare to pick up the flag placed on top of a tree growing in the middle of the river. At this time, a hail of stones is flying from the other shore at the daredevil — thus he is prevented from reaching his goal. Fellow villagers of the brave, in turn, are trying to protect their fellow countryman and throw stones at opponents. The winner of the year is the village whose resident was able to get the flag.

This is what the "festivities" looked like during the festival last year.

Local authorities have repeatedly tried to stop this tradition. In the early 2000s, Gotmar Mela participants were even offered to use rubber balls rather than stones, but none of the villages agreed.

On average, once every two years, one of the participants dies at an ancient festival. Hundreds of teenagers are injured every year. A police spokesman told the media that 462 people were injured this year, while 10 people were seriously injured, three of them are in critical condition.

This year, the event turned into riots. Participants began to smash ambulances and police. Law enforcement officers had to use tear gas.