Telangana Tourism in conjunction with The Yacht Club of Hyderabad conducts the second edition of the Traditional Coracle Racing event

This is a first in India and Telangana takes the lead in creating a whole new international spectacle like the snake boat race in Kerala Indian Coracles are known to have been used used since pre-historic times across water bodies and are mostly found in South India. A Coracle is a small round lightweight boat traditionally used in Wales, Ireland and Scotland for centuries and also used by Julius Caesar for his Spanish Campaign. Coracles are also used extensively in India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Iraq and Tibet for fishing, transportation and tourism. Coracles are eco-friendly primitive, light, bowl-shaped boats with a frame of woven grasses, reeds, or saplings covered with hides. Although these boats were originally designed for general transport, they have recently been used mostly for giving tourists rides. Given that the State Government is in the process of reviving water bodies across the state this eco friendly sport can become a major rural and urban rage. Coracles are called: Putti in Telugu. Parisal in Tamil. Teppa in Kannada. Paddling a circular Coracle is not as easy at it seems and being symmetric most beginners end up just going around in circles instead of forward and it requires practiced symmetric paddling or a swishy figure of 8 kind of paddling to make it move forward in a straight line a skill that needs to be preserved as a tradition. 22 traditionally dressed Fishermen from Srisailam have descended to Hussain Sagar for this traditional race and will vie for honours in three independent series Triples, Doubles and Singles. Each series will have three races each and the winner of the Singles will be declared the Coracle Champion of Telangana “Telangana Tourism is proud to host the second Coracle Championship and we hope to make this an an International Annual event coinciding with the Bathkamma and Dusshera festivals “, said Mr.Burra Venkatesham, Principal Secretary of Tourism and Youth Welfare . ‘We hope to covert this traditional craft racing into a world event in a few years as Coracles are abundant across water bodies on India and across the world.” said Suheim Sheikh The President of the Yacht Club of Hyderabad Organised by the Yacht Club of Hyderabad and supported by Telangana Tourism and Pinkee Events , this festival of Coracle racing is all set to be an annual feature and part of the tourism calendar of the country. The specially illuminated Coracles with Bathkammas will be placed between the iconic Buddha statue and Tank Bund on June 2 to mark the Bathmakka festival We thought that the newly formed state of Telangana needs to start something on the lines of the Kerala snake boat race and given that all tourist centres from Hampi, Srisailam, Nagarjun Sagar, Warangal etc have Coracles, it made sense to conduct India’s second traditional Coracle Regatta in the state of Telangana. Coracle Racing is inexpensive and has the potential to be a nation wide sport.“ , said Suheim Sheikh the President of the Yacht Club who came up with the idea. The government plans to invite districts across the state to participate and we will conduct special training programs and provide the Coracles for the athletes to participate. We look forward to the racing taking root across the state in all water bodies and becoming an international event in the long run.” said Burra Venkatesham,IAS Principal Secretary Tourism and Culture who is overseeing the preparations with TSTDC.