Devotees participate in Khandige fair

Mangaluru: Devotees participated in large numbers in the traditional fresh water fishing held as part of Khandige fair near Haleyangady in Mulki on May 14, Monday.

The fair, known as ‘Ermal Jappu-Khandevy Adepu’, marks the end of ‘Khandevu Nemotsava’ of Dharmarasu Kshethra in Chelaru.

The age old tradition begins after special prayers, and prasadam is offered at Chelaru Bridge at sunrise by Aditya Mukkaldi, Dharmadarshi of Dharmarasu Kshethra.

Devotees engage themselves in fishing. While some catch the fish and take it home, others fish and sell it on the banks of the river. A large number of people line up to purchase the fish.

Praveen and Hemachandra from Sasihithlu who successfully caught some fish said,“We have been coming here to catch fish for the last 25 years. With a rise in the water-level, we did not get the expected quantity of fish.”

People caught a variety of fishes such as ‘Kolaitharu’, ‘Payya’, ‘Mala’, ‘Kevaje’, ‘Mugudu’, crab, ‘Kane’,

‘Sudetha Nang’, ‘Mudai’, ‘Thede’ and ‘Mulitharu’. Fishing is an age old tradition of coastal Tulunadu.