Shimla, Oct 24 (IANS): A centuries-old stone-pelting ritual was held Friday in a Himachal Pradesh village in which two groups, one representing the royal family of the erstwhile princely state and the other comprising commoners, pelted stones at one another.

The injured smeared a 'tilak' on the forehead of the idol of Goddess Kali with their blood. However, there was no major casualty, said police. Some of them got minor injuries and they were provided first-aid by the district administration.

The fair - 'Pattharon ka mela' (festival of stones) - is held annually at Dhami village, once the favourite hunting ground of the British and some 25 km from here, a day after Diwali, the festival of lights.

Old-timers say in the 18th-century festival male adults from Halog, the erstwhile capital of Dhami estate, and neighbouring village Jamog gathered in the village and pelted small stones at one another.

They say getting injured is considered auspicious. The injured smeared a 'tilak' on the forehead of the idol of Goddess Kali with their blood.

This ritual began when human sacrifice to appease Goddess Kali was stopped by the erstwhile rulers of Dhami.

"Over 300 people participated in the stone-pelting exercise that lasted less than half an hour. It was stopped as some of them started bleeding profusely," said an organiser of the fair.

In this ritual, members of the royal family of the erstwhile princely state stood on one side, facing the villagers.

The locals, dressed in a new attire, lined the grassy slopes and pelted stones at the royal family members after the arrival of the deity of the Nara Singh temple, housed in Dhami's palace, at the Kali Devi temple in the village.

Thousands of locals from neighbouring villages gathered in the village to witness the fair, which was also synonymous with trade in traditional items like hand-knitted woollens, farm implements, household items and dry fruits.

The local administration has been discouraging the villagers from participating in the ritual. It had set up makeshift medical camps to treat the injured.