Chemical washing of pillars under way

Pillars at Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple in Madurai being cleaned onWednesday. Photo: S. James

The pillars of Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple here are undergoing chemical washing to remove the accumulated layers of dirt over them.

According to officials, while this effort began before the Kumbabhishekam of Meenakshi temple, performed in April 2009. However, some of the pillars were left uncovered with the event.

This was now being revived. The effort involved spraying a mixture of chemicals over the pillar to remove the layers of lime and dirt that have accumulated over the years.

This is intended to bring out the sculptures and figures intricately carved into the pillar, that have covered over the years by the layers of dirt.

Beauty

This cleaning effort will help devotees and tourists enjoy the beauty of the temple's sculptures, an official said.