Tamil Nadu : Statue goes missing in Arunachaleswara Temple
The police have initiated an inquiry into a complaint lodged by the Department of Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) that a statue and trident (“trishul”) were found “missing” in Sri Arunachaleswarar Temple during regular stock verification. As per the documents available, the idol and trident were handed over to a department in 1959 but the officials had no idea which department it belonged to.
According to the Sources the fact that the idol and trident were missing came to their knowledge during regular stock verification conducted recently. The statue of Sri Dandayudhapani and the trident were marked in the property register being maintained from 1954 as handed over to some other department in 1959.
The temple had 112 statues in 1954 and at present it has 110 statues all made from copper and bronze alloys. However, there is no description of the metal or material that these two were made of. During previous stock verifications these two idols were marked “X”.
The other Dandayudhapani idol in the safe custody is made of copper. The statues were registered with the ASI in 1982 and 1987 when they were photographed and description noted and certified. Speaking to the media R. Ponni, Superintendent of Police, Tiruvannamalai, said the Joint Commissioner of HR and CE lodged a complaint on this issue. “This is not a case of theft. As per handwritten documents, the idol and trident were handed over to a department in 1959. The idol and trident were not returned to the temple,” she said.
Andhra Pradesh : Shanakara Vanam, Srisailam bags the Green Award
Shankara Vanam developed by the authorities of Srisailam temple is selected for Andhra Pradesh Green Award. The award has been announced by the Andhra Pradesh Urban Greening and Beautification Corporation (AP-UGBC).
Collector Sandeep Nanduri held a discussion with officials on Thursday regarding the arrangements to be made for Our Lady of Snows Basilica festival. As thousands would be attending the festival, held from July 25 to August 6, officials discussed security arrangements, facilities like water supply, sanitation and emergency services to be made available for the devotees. District Revenue Officer M. Veerappan, Corporation Commissioner Alby John Varghese and Sub-Collector M.S. Prasanth were present.
The award has been announced for the development of horticulture gardens and better management. Srisailam temple has bagged the first prize for small parks under public parks category, said the temple Public Relations Officer Srinivasa Tadikonda in a statement released on Thursday.
Srisailam Temple Executive Officer (EO), Sri Ramachandra Murthy will receive the award from Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu at an official programme to be held on July 14th on the premises of the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) in Nuzvid of Krishna district.
Every year, the state government is announcing awards to horticulture in various categories. The PRO further stated, to enhance spiritual atmosphere in Srisailam, the temple is planting Devatha Vrukshalu. The temple has developed 12 parks to provide pleasant atmosphere to the devotees. In addition, Mallamma Thota and Bhramari Pushpa Vanam are also being developed for performing Swami Ammavarla Nitya Kainkaryam, he said.
Shankara Vanam was developed in an extent of half acre on the northern side of the temple on the natural rocks and these horticulture gardens are called “Rock Gardens”. On the either sides of the footpath leading to Shankara Vanam, lush green grass was developed and planted with various flower plants. Horticulture mandapam was also constructed in Shankara Vanam.
Tamil Nadu temples to get FSSAI tag for ‘prasadam’
As many as 47 major temples in Tamil Nadu run by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department will get Food Safety and Standards Authority of India certification for their ‘prasadam,’ the Government has announced today.
The exercise, aimed at ensuring quality and bringing in standardisation, began with the prasadam of the famous Sri Palani Murugan temple’s (Dhandayuthapaniswamy temple) ‘Panchamirtham’ (a mix of banana, ghee, honey, sugar and dates). According to the FSSAI, Palani Murugan temple was pilot project and that they have initiated the process of getting FSSAI certification in other 46 temples. The Murugan temple’s panchamirtham prasadam now features FSSAI licence number, price, weight and best before date.
After a lot of complaints across various temples in the state, the FSSAI took the decision to give give quality assurance to the devotees in regard to the prasadam. In April this year, two women died and over 30 people took ill after consuming prasadam provided by a privately administered temple at Mettupalayam near Coimbatore. Madurai Meenakshi Amman temple, Rameswaram Sri Ramanathaswamy temple, Srirangam Ranganathaswamy temple and Tiruvannamalai Arunachaleswara temple are among the major shrines of Tamil Nadu.
Andhra Pradesh : Brahmotsavams conclude in Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy Temple
The nine-day annual brahmotsavams of Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple at Appalayagunta came to a grand close with the celestial ‘Chakrasnanam’ marking the conclusion of the religious fête. The processional deities and Sudarshana Chakrattalwar were rendered Snapana Tirumanjanam followed by a holy dip in the temple tank.
‘Dhwajavarohanam was observed amidst chanting of Veda mantras marking the successful completion of the event.
The nine-day annual Brahmotsavam of Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple at Appalayagunta, 20 km from here, took off on a colourful note with Dhwajarohanam last week.
The flag bearing image of Lord of Aves – Garudalwar was hoisted on the temple pillar at the anointed auspicious Karkataka Lagnam between 9.30am and10 am amidst chanting of Vedic hymns by temple priests in the temple.
Noted Vaikhanasa Agama scholar Sundaravadanacharyulu and temple priest Suryakumaracharyulu carried out the religious event with utmost devotion as per agamas. Speaking on the occasion, TTD Joint Executive Officer Pola Bhaskar invited the denizens and pilgrims to take part in this Brahmotsavam of Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy temple which will be held for nine days.
The presiding deity of the temple under the control of TTD, is popular for ‘Abhaya Hasta Mudra’ (with hand in blessing posture) he said and added that elaborate arrangements were made to cope with the large number of devotees expected to witness the nine day long religious spectacle.
The temple in the recent year gained popularity with the locals and also considerable number of pilgrims visiting Tirumala preferring to visit the shrine, along with Tiruchanur Padmavathi Ammavaru temple, he pointed out.
Marking the occasion, Bhajanns, cultural programmes like Kolatam were conducted outside the temple in the village. Deputy Executive Officer Chinnamgari Ramana, AEO Nagaratna, superintendent Pavan Kumar and others were present.
Tamil Nadu : Arrangements Underway for Our Lady of Snows Basillica Festival
Arrangements are under way for the 435th festival of Our Lady of Snows Shrine Basilica in Thoothukodi. Collector Sandeep Nanduri held a discussion with officials on Thursday regarding the arrangements to be made for Our Lady of Snows Basilica festival. As thousands would be attending the festival, held from July 25 to August 6, officials discussed security arrangements, facilities like water supply, sanitation and emergency services to be made available for the devotees.
About five lakh people are expected to take part in the 11-day annual festival which will begin on July 25th with a flag-hoisting ceremony at 7.30 a.m. Special prayer services would be conducted throughout the festival.
Detailing the programmes, he said a compact disc titled ‘Punitha Maadha’ would be released and cultural programmes conducted in the evening on all festival days. The festival was not confined to Christians as people of all faiths would participate in the celebrations. People from across India and from Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore and other countries were expected to attend the festival.
The district Administration has declared a local holiday on August 5, the feast day when and festival comes to a close.
Must read elangana all set for month long ‘Bonalu’
Must read Dada J.P. Vaswani Mahasamadhi today in Pune Ashram
