Repair of fire-hit areas in Meenakshi temple still on

The fire incident, which took place on the night of February 2 last year, caused extensive damage to the pillars and the Veera Vasantharayar Mandapam, the sixteenth century structure inside the temple. As many as 39 shops were completely gutted. When contacted, N Natarajan, Executive Officer of the temple, said it would take nearly two years of time to complete the restoration process. An estimation is on with formal procedures such as sketch documentation and photo documentation, he said.

“After assessing the stability of samples taken from 9 stone quarries, a specialist team from IIT Madras selected the one lifted from Pattinam village in Namakkal district. It will be used to replace the damaged portion.”

Natarajan also said efforts are on to introduce digital ticketing for the safe keeping of cell phones belonging to devotees. “It would take one or two months to roll out this facility, which would then help save time for the devotees,” he said.

On an average, a revenue of around Rs 10 lakh to Rs 15 lakh is collected every month from devotees who avail the facility. Around 40 individuals belonging to women self-help groups have been engaged for this purpose at the collection points located in five towers of the temple.

A parking area is being created on the Teppakulam – Anupanadi road at a cost of Rs 14 lakh. This facility would cater to devotees bound from the eastern side, especially from Rameswaram and Sivagangai, Natarajan added,