TIRUCHY: Even as the construction of two mandapams, announced in the state Assembly a few months ago for the benefit of pilgrims to the Mariamman temple in Samayapuram, is yet to commence, the groundbreaking ceremony for a third resting facility funded by an individual was held last week.
The facility coming up on the Samayapuram service road at a cost of Rs 85.5 lakh is expected to be completed by March. During the state Assembly session held earlier this year, an announcement on two new mandapams for the HR&CE temple was made.
One of them that will be located within the temple premises will come up at an estimate of Rs 11 crore. The second will replace the old Pallividai mandapam with a new building and car parking facility at a cost of Rs 3.5 crore, the announcement stated.
Construction of the two mandapams is yet to begin. The announcement comes as many pilgrims arrive at the temple a day early and stay overnight to attend early morning darshan. The lack of adequate resting facilities, however, has put them, particularly the elderly coming from far-off places, to hardship.
While the temple on the Tiruchy-Chennai national highway has older resting facilities like the Amavasai Mandapam inside the premises and another one at Pallividai near the Vengangudi bridge, these have either been repurposed or are insufficient to cater to the increasing footfall.
The older Amavasai Mandapam has been converted into an annadhanam hall, while a newer one was opened in 2024 to serve as a pilgrims’ shelter during festivals. It is against this backdrop that work on the mandapam on the Samayapuram service road commenced on October 2.
The project costing Rs 85.5 lakh is being funded by R Ramamoorthy, a donor from Villivakkam in Chennai. He along with his family members and Samayapuram Temple Board of Trustees Chairman VSP Elangovan and Joint Commissioner M Surya Narayanan took part in the groundbreaking ceremony. Elangovan told TNIE,
"The mandapams will bring much-needed relief to devotees, offering them a clean and comfortable space to rest. The three mandapams are strategically planned at different locations around the temple so that pilgrims arriving from various places can benefit." "We are committed to improving facilities for devotees while preserving the cultural heritage of the temple.
These mandapams will help reduce crowding during festivals and provide essential amenities for the elderly and outstation pilgrims," said Surya Narayanan. On the mandapam, C Velusamy of Madurai said, "Many pilgrims like me struggle to find a place to rest during festivals. This (mandapam) will be a big help."
