The 10-day-long annual ‘Koda’ festival at the Mandaikad Bhagavathy Temple in the coastal town in Tamil Nadu began on Sunday with the hoisting of the ceremonial flag (Kodiyettu) in the presence of thousands of devotees from Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
The temple tantri Edakkode Sankaranarayanan initiated the festival rites in the presence of Telangana Governor Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan. The Koda ceremony will take place on March 9.
‘Valiyapadukka,’one of the major rituals conducted during the festival, will be held on March 5 and the procession of ‘Valiya Theevatti’ on March 8. The festival concludes on March 9 with the ‘Odukku Pooja’ at midnight.
During the festival season, thousands of devotees flock to Mandaikad from south Kerala.
The Tamil Nadu government has made elaborate arrangements to regulate the flow of pilgrims.
The Tamil Nadu police has deployed 1,000 special police and a contingent of Marine Police as part of security preparations to control the queues. Half a dozen watchtowers have been installed around the temple including the coastal areas.
The Mandaikad Devi Temple is situated off the sea coast near Colachel of the erstwhile Travancore princely State.
Kerala rites
Despite being in Tamil Nadu, the temple and its festivals are run as per the rites and traditions followed in Kerala. It was in 1803 that the former ruler of Travancore took over the administration of the temple.
The temple is now administered by the Kanyakumari Devaswom Board.
