Thousands witness Vairamudi festival in Melkote

With tight security measures in place, the diamond crown was brought from the district treasury to the venue for the puja.

Home, Transport and District In-Charge Minister R Ashoka, MLA C S Puttaraju and others were present at the temple to offer puja to the deity.

Speaking to media persons, Ashoka said that the State government would develop the taluk. Already, Rs 10 crore had been released for the development of Melkote shrine. Another Rs 2 crore had been released for development works.

Committee

He said a committee has been constituted to tell the government about the taluk’s requirement.  The state transport corporation would operate special buses on all the three days of the festival, he added.

Deputy Commissioner Dr P C Jaffer, Zilla Panchayat CEO Jayaram, Superintendent of Police Kaushalendra Kumar, MLA Ashwathnarayan, ZP President Ramalingaiah, District BJP President J B Shivakumar were present.

Tension

Tense moments prevailed as some persons under the influence of alcohol joined the sea of devotees during the Vairamudi festival. This forced the authorities to cut short the procession and brought back to temple. The procession was to end at 4 am. At one point of time the Vairamudi tilted precariously causing tension among the priests. Utter chaos prevailed and understanding the gravity of situation, Additional SP Rajanna came to the spot and brought the situation under control.