Drought-hit Indian village parades naked boy to please the rain gods

Several parts of India have been facing a severe heat wave and a long spell of drought this year, with several villages resorting to desperate measures to find water. In a drought-hit village in southern India, a young boy was was asked to parade naked as part of a ritual to appease the rain god. 

The ritual took place in the Pardarhalli village in Chitradurga district in the southern state of Karnataka, which has been facing a drought for the last five years, with acute shortage of drinking water. The residents bathed the boy by pouring pots of water over his head, followed by prayers to an idol. The boy then carried the idol across the village, accompanied by the beating of drums. Finally, he was offered new clothes as part of the ceremony.

This isn't the only unusual resort to please the rain gods in India though. For instance, some parts invoke rain by organising frog weddings and then sending off the amphibians into the river after the ceremony.

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