41 pigeons race from Nagpur to Chennai

Surprisingly, in the era of Formula One sports, pigeon race is still in vogue.

Forty-one pigeons were released from the sprawling Kasturchand Park in Nagpur on Thursday by a group of pigeon-racing enthusiasts. The pigeons will fly to their homes in Chennai.

"The birds will fly at a speed of about 1.5 km per minute. They will cover about 950 km and reach tomorrow [Friday] evening," Tamil Nadu Homer Pigeon Racing Association secretary E Eswaran said.

"Today's [Thursday] flying time would be around 11 to 12 hours. After a night halt, the birds will resume their onwards journey," Nagpur District Pigeon Club member Raju Gaonkar said.

Pigeons were gradually trained to fly 140 km, 210 km, 310 km, 410 km and 680 km before this race, he said.

The birds belong to the New Madras Racing Pigeon Association in Chennai, Umar Pigeon Fancy Club and Tamil Nadu Pigeon Racing Society, Eswaran said, adding, the cost of a bird ranges from Rs 500 to Rs 1,000.