Kollam temple fire: Temples should abide by explosives rule, says Prayar

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Travancore Devaswom Board president Prayar Gopalakrishnan has asked the temples under the board to adhere to the existing rules while conducting fireworks.

He said in a circular that in all the 1248 temples under the board, including Sabarimala, worship, including fireworks, should go on. But temples should adhere to the Explosives Rule, 2008. “The rights of the devotees have to be continued, but rituals have to be initiated as per the laws,” said Mr. Gopalakrishnan.

The Supreme Court had said in an order that fireworks should not be conducted after 10 p.m. until daybreak although temples across the state have been blatantly violating it. As per the Explosives Rule, locals should be evacuated 100 metres away from where the fireworks are staged.

He said there are scores of temples in the state which don’t come under any of the four devaswoms, including Guruvayur, Malabar and Cochin devaswom boards. Such temples are managed by scores of committees.

When there has been a raging debate on whether tuskers should be paraded in temple festivals, Mr N. Peethambara Kurup, local Congress leader and former MP, who’s also the Guruvayur Devaswom Board president, was congratulated by the Puttingal temple authorities for bringing in a tusker, Guruvayur Nandan, from Guruvayur for the seven-day festival.