Steps taken to make car fest safe at Srirangam

Trichy: Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) department has intensified security arrangements for the

Chithirai

temple car festival of Arulmigu Ranganathaswamy temple in

Srirangam

to be held on Friday in the wake of the

Thanjavur

chariot tragedy. Tangedco will cut off power supply to Srirangam for a brief while to ensure safety of the pilgrims pulling the temple car.District collector

S Sivarasu

and city police commissioner G Karthikeyan inspected the roads in Srirangam and reviewed safety measures on Thursday. The department expects about 1 lakh people to participate in the event. Top officials reviewed the stability of the temple car and tested the hydraulic brake system. “Apart from removing electric lines and low-lying cables before the temple car makes its progress, Tangedco will also suspend power supply to various parts of Srirangam between 6am and 9.30am. Branches of trees on the streets are being trimmed,” S Marimuthu, joint commissioner, Srirangam temple told TOI.Devotees will be stopped from approaching the temple car’s wheels. City police have arranged parking spaces near Moolathoppu, Neduntheru Mandhai, Kollidam flood bank road and on the playground of Srimad Andavan College. Traffic diversions would come into effect on Friday. City and mofussil buses leaving the Chathiram bus stand will only take Anna Silai, Odathurai road and Trichy-Chennai NH route.