Chitra Pournami fest: Arunachala Hills off limits for devotees
In a bid to prevent untoward incidents, devotees will not be allowed to climb the Arunachala Hills in Tiruvannamalai town during Chitra Pournami festival — to be celebrated on Sunday and Monday.
According to estimates, 25-30 lakh visitors are expected to visit the temple in view of the festival. Trespassing is banned at seven vulnerable locations on the hills, officials of the Forest Department, said.
'The ban will be strictly enforced. Forest teams have been deployed to prevent trespassing...,' Yogesh Kumar Darg, District Forest Officer (DFO), Tiruvannamalai, told The Hindu. Forest officials said that apart from the ban on climbing, pilgrims will not be allowed to enter the 14 km-long Girivalam Path around the hills, considering the safety of wild animals in the surrounding reserve forest — home to over 5,000 spotted deer. Such a move, they said, would also prevent accidental forest fires.
At present, the hills are divided into eastern and western parts, covering over 900 hectares. The western side, which spans 699 hectares, is a reserve forest and the eastern side, which spans 2.99 hectares, is a reserve land under the (Tamil Nadu) Forest Act, 1882. The reserve land is mainly used for tree plantation drives carried out by the Revenue Department.
Arrangements checked
Collector K. Tharpagaraj, along with Tiruvannamalai Superintendent of Police M. Sudhakar, inspected the arrangements for the festival. Among civic amenities, 20 temporary bus termini have been set up on the outskirts of the town to operate 4,533 buses. Around 165 shuttle services will be available between the termini and the town.
Traffic advisory has been issued for local residents. Those who have received special passes from the police can use cars and other vehicles within the town till 5 p.m on Sunday. Normal vehicular movement will resume at 6 a.m on May 13.
Helpline numbers — 9363622330, 9159616263 and 9498100431 —have been announced for people to contact during emergencies. Two field level hospitals, 56 medical teams and 50 ambulances, including 15 bike ambulances, have been kept ready. A total of 5,197 police personnel will be deployed during the festival.
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