Cams at Rameswaram temple are of poor quality: Manickavel

Recently the temple had installed 24 CCTV cameras inside the temple and 12 more in the lodges associated with the temple. The police say that they also have plans to install 56 more CCTV cameras in and around the temple. 

During the recent temple inspection by IG Pon Manickavel, he was aghast at the dismal state of the CCTV cameras inside the temple.

When he checked the cameras, he found that two dome cameras installed in the third prakaram were not functioning. He came down heavily on the temple authorities 

for installing cameras of inferior quality. 

The sources said that initially a good CCTV company at Coimbatore was asked to install CCTV cameras inside the temple but as officials demanded a commission, the company did not go ahead with the project. Therefore, with the help of a local company at Thangachimadam, cameras of inferior quality were installed. 

Joint Commissioner of the temple Mangaiyarkarasi said that she was not aware of the quality of the cameras. When Assistant Director of HR&CE, Mayilvaganan, was questioned, he said that the cameras are in a good condition and the dome cameras which were installed by the police department had not been put to use. 

He also asserted that the cameras were not of inferior quality and it is just that the specification mentioned by the IG was different. He said that the specifications were fixed by his higher officials and he had no role in it.