A large number of devotees thronged the Perumal temples here on the first Saturday of Tamil month Purattasi, an auspicious day, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
In many of the temples, personal distancing norms were flouted by the devotees. Executive Officer of Koodal Azhagar Perumal Temple M. Ramasamy said around 5,000 devotees visited the temple on Saturday morning. “The devotees stood in long queues that extended upto Periyar bus stand from 5 a.m. onwards,” he said.
But the temple officials and police personnel repeatedly urged the devotees to maintain adequate distance. The devotees were asked to wear face masks and they had to undergo thermal screening before entering the temples. Hand sanitisers were provided to devotees inside the temple, he added.
Similarly, around 3,500 devotees thronged Sundararaja Perumal Temple at Alagarkoil in the morning, said temple Deputy Commissioner (in charge) T. Anitha. “Devotees were asked to stand in long queues with adherence to personal distancing norms,” she said.
But the crowd was relatively less at Prasanna Venkatachalapathy Temple in Tallakulam. “The flag hoisting for the Purattasi Brahmotsavam was held in the temple in the morning in the presence of very few devotees,” said Ms. Anitha.
