Date:02/01/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/01/02/stories/2009010258800300.htm

Tamil Nadu - Madurai

Devotees throng Meenakshi temple

Staff Reporter

To pray for peace and prosperity in the new year; authorities make special arrangements

— Photo: G. Moorthy

seek blessing: People waiting at the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple in the city on Thursday.

MADURAI: The dawn of a New Year saw a huge number of devotees thronging the temples to pray for peace and prosperity for the days to come.

Thousands of devotees went to the Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple here on Thursday as huge queues were spotted from early hours in the day.

According to K. Rajanayagam, Joint Commissioner, Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR and CE) Department and Executive Office of the temple, special arrangements were made to ensure a hassle-free darshan for the devotees.

Care was also taken to ensure the ongoing kumbabhishekam-related renovation works did not cause problems to devotees. The kumbabhishekam has been scheduled for April 8.

Except for the North Tower and Raja Gopuram, remaining entries were thrown open for the public. A number of police personnel were deployed on the occasion to regulate the crowd.