Madurai: The Veeravasantharayar Mandapam inside the Meenakshi Amman temple here was extensively damaged in the recent fire accident, said members of the expert committee who inspected the temple on Thursday. The high-level expert committee which comprises 12 members had begun the inspection after they had discussions with the temple authorities. “During the inspection, we found that the Veeravasantharayar Mandapam was extensively damaged. The incident did not cause any damage to the thousand-pillars Mandapam and Amman Samadhi” said the expert committee members. The committee members have advised to remove the debris from the Veeravasantharayar Mandapam following the safety precautions. “Documentation work of statues would begin after the completion of placing iron rods to give stability to the Mandapam,” said the members.
MINOR FIRE: Meanwhile, a minor fire spark was seen in the air-conditioner and other electronics items at the administrative office of the temple on Thursday.
However, sources said that there was nothing to panic about. “Smoke was seen coming out of the air conditioner and other electronic items because of a short circuit due to power overload in the EB transformer,” added the source. EOM.
lapses on the part of the temple administration.
Various organisations have been protesting for taking action against the temple officials, said the petitioner. However, to manage the situation the temple administration has put the entire blame on the shops and issued notices to them to vacate, he said.
Despite the shops paying a rent of Rs two lakh every month to the temple authorities, they had not implemented any safety measures for the shops, said the petitioner.
However, the court directed the shops which had received notice from the temple administration, to vacate before 12 noon on Friday. The temple authorities would provide space for them to keep their articles and the shop owners should shift them within three weeks, added the court.
