Telangana: Huge demand for fighting cocks as Sankranti approaches

Kothagudem: As cockfight organizers prepare for the Sankranti festival, the demand for fighting cocks is on the rise in erstwhile Khammam district. Despite being illegal, cockfight events are organized in Telangana at Bhadrachalam, Dammapet, Aswaraopet, Sathupalli, Mulakalapalli on the borders of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Large scale cockfight events take place in border areas like Kukkunur, Velarpadu, Sitanagaram, Tiruvuru during the three days of Sankranti in AP. The price of each cock reared for fighting ranges from Rs 10,000 to Rs 1 lakh. Generally, cocks of one and a half to two years of age are used for cock fighting. Srinivas, a breeder from Mulakalapally, said rearing fighting cocks would cost around Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000. According to them the cocks used for fighting are classified into four categories based on the color of the bird, namely Nemali (multi-coloured), Kaki (black), Dega (red) and Kodi (white). There are also sub categories like Rasangi, Abrasi and Parla. Bets ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 50 lakh are placed on each fight depending on the financial status of the individuals. The highest bidding is seen in places like Bhimavaram in Andhra Pradesh because rich people gather there to place bets. People organizing cockfights a week before Sankranti look for the best birds with good size and stamina, which depends on the food the birds are fed. He told that generally people who raise cocks for cock fighting feed them almonds, mutton kheema, grains, cashew nuts and boiled eggs. There are people raising fighting cocks in Bhadrachalam, Dammapet, Aswaraopet, Sathupalli, Mulakalapalli and other places in Kothagudem district as well as in Sathupalli and other places in Khammam district. Organizers of cockfights visit weekly markets to purchase cocks or contact breeders personally.