Chennai, May 12 Two devotees lost their lives during the grand Lord Kallalagar Vaigai River entry event, part of the ongoing Chithirai festival in Madurai on Monday.
Boominathan (61), a native of Tirunelveli, collapsed while attending the highly anticipated ritual near Goripalayam. He had entered the venue using a temple-issued pass and was among the thousands gathered along the riverbanks to witness the symbolic entry of Lord Kallalagar into the Vaigai.
He fainted amid the crowd and was rushed to an emergency ambulance stationed at the site. However, confusion over the designated exit route for ambulances caused a brief delay in transporting him to the Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH).
Doctors declared him ‘brought dead’ upon arrival. Sources revealed that Boominathan was a cardiac patient and on regular medication, though the exact cause of death is subject to a post-mortem examination.
In a separate incident, another man identified as Kannan (43) was found unconscious near the same venue. He, too, was taken to GRH, where doctors pronounced him dead on arrival. The cause of his death remains unknown and is under investigation.
The Vaigai River entry is a key highlight of the annual Chithirai festival, which is being held from May 8 to 17.
On Monday morning, Lord Kallalagar, adorned in traditional green silk robes symbolising agricultural prosperity, mounted on a majestic golden horse vahana, arrived at the HR&CE Department’s Mandagapadi, built on the Vaigai River at 5:48 a.m.
As the deity arrived, chants of “Govinda Govinda” filled the air, and loudspeakers played the traditional devotional song “Vararu Vararu Alagar Vararu,” creating a spiritually charged atmosphere.
The grand procession had reached Tallakulam Perumal Temple on Sunday night and departed early Monday morning toward the Vaigai River.
As per custom, Lord Veera Raghava Perumal from Kudal Alagar Temple, mounted on a silver horse vahana, welcomed Kallalagar into the river.
Following the rituals and traditional circling of the platform, the procession continued along the northern banks of the Vaigai to Ramarayar Mandapam for the ‘Theertha Vari’ ritual. Here, devotees dressed as Kallalagar and Pathinettam Padi Karuppu sprayed scented water using traditional leather bags called ‘Thopparai.’
Later in the day, the deity proceeded toward Vandiyur Perumal Temple, with plans to visit Thenur Mandapam on Tuesday to enact the lifting of Sage Manduka’s curse.
Authorities had made elaborate arrangements to manage the massive crowd that had gathered from across Tamil Nadu and beyond to witness the revered event.
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