Tiruvarur temple, TN and big chariot. thiyagarajaswamytemple tnhrce.in/ |
2020 car festival cancelled due to Corona . Tiruvsrur Aazhi ther - thehindu.com |
Thiruvarur ther. car festival TN nammatrichy.in |
Unfortunately, this year the popular chariot festival was not held at Thiruvarur, the capital of the district because of Covid-19 pandemic. The devotees of this small town and neighboring areas were quite disappointed over the cancellation of ''Therottam'' - conduct of chariot festival because the state administration has cancelled all temple festivals, etc across the state. These may attract a large gathering of devotees at one place. In the absence of proper medication and treatment for the new virus from China, the government is particular about people wearing mask over the mouth and nose and observe social distancing like other states do. The entire TN state has been under lock down for a few weeks in various hospitals and certain parts of cities like Erode, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli and Chennai, etc are sealed because virus infection is reported from such places.
Tiruvarur, TN location map. .mapsofindia.com |
Across Tamil Nadu the temple festivals and other festivities are not allowed by the government as a precaution to retard the progress of the virus spread. This year, the people of Tiruvarur miss the religious fervor and gaiety during the festivities that normally would last for 25 long days. Last year the main car festival was held on the first of April and the devotees were led by velakkuruchi Aadheenam and the district collector. Flag-hoisting function took place on the 22 of February; two weeks later the main deity was taken to the Devasiriyar mandapam where ''patha darsanam''(holy feet of the lord) function was held on March 26. The entire district will enjoy a holiday on the car festival day and it has been a custom for a long time.
https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/All-set-for-the-majestic-Azhi-ther/article14425392.ece
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiruvarur_Chariot_festival