ERODE: Tamil Nadu Home Secretary P Amutha and Bhavanisagar MLA A Bannari were among the devotees who took part in the annual kundam (fire walking) festival of the Bannari Mariamman temple at Sathyamangalam on Tuesday.
According to sources, around one lakh people attended the festival from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Bannari Mariamman temple is located adjacent to Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR). The Kundam festival is held annually in the temple in the Tamil month of Panguni. This year, the festival started on March 11.
The fire walk ritual, the main event of the festival, started early on Tuesday. Around 3.45 am, Chief Priest Parthiban performed puja and walked on the charcoal bed of fire first. He was followed by other priests and temple authorities. P Amutha, Principal Secretary of Home, S Murugan, IGP of STF, Bhavanisagar MLA A Bannari and several other VIPs followed suit.
Devotees from Erode, Tiruppur, Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Namakkal and Karnataka performed a fire walk till Tuesday afternoon. Fire and Rescue Services personnel and police allowed devotees to walk on the kundam one by one to prevent accidents. Finally, people with their cattle performed the walk. Devotees offered turmeric, salt and pepper to the deity and performed special pujas on the occasion. The festival will conclude on April 1.
A local holiday was declared in Erode district on Tuesday on account of the festival. Special buses were operated to the temple from all over the district. The traffic was diverted on the Dhimbam Hill road. More than 2,000 policemen were involved in managing the crowd.