Drowning of 5 youth | Temple festival was organised without HR&CE Department’s knowledge, says T.N. Minister
The Hindu
Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Minister, P.K. Sekar Babu, on Thursday, told the Legislative Assembly that incidents such as Wednesday’s drowning of five persons in a tank in Moovarasampet, Chennai, during a Theerthavari festival took place because such festivals were organised without intimating the HR&CE Department.
Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Minister, P.K. Sekar Babu, on Thursday, told the Legislative Assembly that incidents such as Wednesday’s drowning of five persons in a tank in Moovarasampet, Chennai, during a Theerthavari festival took place because such festivals were organised without intimating the HR&CE Department.
Responding to a special calling attention motion, the Minister said the trustees of the Dharmalingeshwarar temple had been organising the Theerthavari festival for the past four years, but had not informed the HR&CE Department about this. “In future, temple trustees should intimate the Department about festivals so that we can take precautionary measures,” he said.
Mr. Sekar Babu said when news about the tragedy broke out, Chief Minister M. K. Stalin chided him for not keeping the temple tank in good condition. He also said the tank, where the tragedy took place, actually belonged to the local panchayat and was recently renovated at a cost of ₹50.5 lakh by T.M. Anbarasan, Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Industries.
“The temple is managed by the Sarva Mangala Seva Trust and they decided to conduct a Kumbabishekam on September 8, 2022. When the HR&CE Department found out about this, it immediately appointed the Executive Officer of the Nanganallur Anjaneya temple as the trustee of that temple. The trust has now filed an appeal, and the case will be heard on April 12,” he explained.
The Minister also said the government had announced a solatium of ₹2 lakh each to the families of the deceased, and would extend all the possible help to them.
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