Temples Across Tamil Nadu Will Reopen From Friday To Moderate Audience
Update: 2021-10-16 10:45 IST
HR&CE-managed temples all across state reopened on Friday.
Following nearly five months, HR&CE-managed temples all across state reopened on Friday. In Chennai, major temples drew a small turnout. On Vijayadasami day, tens of thousands of parents and their children flocked to temples in Mahalingapuram, Anna Nagar, and MRC Nagar in Chennai especially in the morning to participate in the Vidyarambham, a traditional event of initiating young children to the learning world. On Thursday, the Tamil Nadu government stated that public worship will be allowed on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
The footfall was somewhat higher in the evening at Kapaleeswarar Temple, Mylapore, and Vadapalani Murugan Temple. Although, there was minimal traffic congestion as expected, since many people have returned to their homes to celebrate the puja holidays with their relatives.
Footfall was modest in the morning across the state, but several temples saw greater crowds in the evening, and Covid-19 norms were thrown out the window in numerous temples. In the morning, the Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple in Madurai had short lines. Many people were unaware of the government's decision until it was disclosed on Thursday.
Footfalls were low at the Sri Ramanathaswamy Temple in Rameswaram, which is a popular pilgrimage site over long weekends like this one. On Friday, footfall in Trichy and other areas in the central region was minimal. The attendance at temples in Srirangam, Thiruvanaikoil, and Rockfort was mild. Over the weekend, devotees are anticipated to flood in.
The resuming of temples pleased parents whose children were being admitted to schools. A big amount of people brought their children to the Sidhapudhur Ayyappan temple in Coimbatore for the Vidhyarambam. In the meantime, temple employees believe that following Covid rules during the Sabarimala season will be difficult.
Meanwhile, P K Sekar Babu, the minister of Hindu religious and charitable endowments, told reporters in Vadapalani that all temples had established measures to respect social distance standards among pilgrims. He claimed that restarting temples had nothing to deal with the BJP's complaints because the decision was taken with the wishes of the people in consideration.