In spite of protests by a huge number of residents, the coarse stone flooring in the prakaram and pradakshina course at Sri Parthasarathy Temple were re-laid with new granite stones a few months ago by the HR & CE.
They have also covered the same areas with a permanent shelter, obstructing the darshan of the Anandha Vimanam, Vedavalli Thayar Vimanam and the Varadhar Sannidhi Vimanam. The covering has also stopped the movement of free air in the area.
The new polished stones generate a lot of heat, unlike the coarse stone flooring which is considered to be a natural absorber of heat and water and also provides acupressure effect. Devotees are anguished and pained by these recent developments.
Many members of the public have been requesting various organisations in the fore-front of service to represent the anguish of the residents to the authorities concerned and initiate some action. But in vain.
A protest was staged by social service organisations such as the Srinivasa Young Men’s Association, Nanbargal Kuzhu, Triplicane Brahmins Welfare Association and Yadava Sabhai on August 19. They gathered a number of devotees, heritage enthusiasts and advocates at the Allathul Nathamunigal Ramanuja Koodam, Singarachari Street, Triplicane, to discuss various issues related to the problem.
Views
Some of the views expressed by residents are :
Ramani: When questioned, the HR & CE said that the basement was weak and so the flooring had to be relaid. In that case, can the basement withstand the weight of the new stones that have been pasted on the traditional floor?
Srinivasan: The new floor not only emanates a lot of heat but is also slippery when it rains. We are ready to observe a token fast or form a human chain. All that we want is the old floor back in the prakaram.
Sampath: The temple authorities have failed to observe the spiritual aspect of the issue. It has changed the ambience.
Aravamudhan: Compared to the enormity of the issue the crowd here is less. We should gather in larger numbers in front of the temple.
T.R. Ramesh, (President, Temple Worshipers Society), said that the HR&CE had control only over the administration of temple properties and drew a comparison with a similar situation at Srirangam, Tiruchi.
Vittal Narayanan , a member of VHP, informed the audience that the issue has been taken up legally. “We have filed a writ petition in the court and we hope that the judgment will be in our favour.”
P. Srinivasan , Councillor, said that the problem is yet to reach the Chief Minister. “I will try my best to bring it to the notice of the Government so that positive action is taken.”
S. Sampath Kumar , president of SYMA, expressed deep concern that the present black marble will not allow water to percolate into the ground unlike the old stones and there can be stagnation as well.
The meeting thus reflected the general mood of the devotees – pain and agony over the recent changes — and the intransigent way in which the temple administration had handled the issue.
After passing a resolution opposing the present construction, Mr. Sampath Kumar added that the proceedings of the meet are being sent to the Chief Minister, HR&CE and other authorities.
