DHARMAPURI: A day after the chariot of a temple at Mathehalli in Papparapatti collapsed, killing two people and injuring four, Minister for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare MRK Panneerselvam on Tuesday said an investigation revealed the incident happened because the axle of the chariot broke.
He told this to the media after handing over solatium to the families of the two victims and inspecting the accident site. Further, he directed officials to take steps to prevent such incidents in future.
P Anbarasu (52), a resident of Mathehalli, who witnessed the mishap from close quarters, said, “I have been attending the festival since my childhood but had not seen such an incident. The chariot procession for Kaliamman temple has been followed for more than five generations in the village.
The chariot was stopped using a wooden log, but around 6 pm, even though the wooden log was lowered, the chariot didn’t stop and the axle broke, which led to this incident, which occurred just 100 m from the place where it was to stop.”