The iconic Navarathri procession to the capital city got under way in all its pomp and splendour from the Padmanabhapuram Palace near Thuckalay, in Tamil Nadu, on Thursday.
Continuing an age old tradition, Minister for Archaeology Kadannappally Ramachandran received the ceremonial sword from Archaeology Director K.R. Sona before handing it over to Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran, who finally passed it on to M. Anbumani, Joint Commissioner of the Kanyakumari Devaswom Board, to formally mark the launch of the procession at the Upparika Malika at the Padmanabhapuram Palace.
Idols
After a puja, a caparisoned tusker carried the idol of Goddess Saraswathi, followed by those of Velayutha Perumal from the Velimalai Murugan temple and Munnuthitha Nangai from Sthanumalyan Temple in Suchindram in palanquins to the palace.
