Title - Lakhs witness Karthigai Deepam

Lakhs of devotees witnessed the lighting of the Karthigai Maha Deepam on the summit of the Tiruvannamalai hill on Tuesday.They started to pour into the town from daybreak for performing ‘girivalam’.Setting stage for the big event in the evening, the Barani Deepam was lighted inside the sanctum of the temple in the wee hours as thousands of devotees were watching from the precincts.At 6 p.m. the ‘Deepa Nattars’, who hail from fishermen community, lighted the Maha Deepam, a huge cauldron filled with three tones of ghee and topped with a wick made of several hundred meters of cotton cloth, atop the hill. Devotees going around the hill turned towards it with folded hands chanting “Annamalaiyanukku arogara.”The temple, where simultaneous rituals were going on, and the town and villages surrounding the hill broke into light moments after the flame of the deepam was seen on the summit.The ten-day Karthigai Deepam festival, which started with hoisting of the flag at the Sri Arunachaleswarar temple on November 18, culminated with this ritual.Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation operated 2,000 special buses from different towns of the State and the Railways operated special trains. Ministers Gokula Indira, M.S.M. Anandan and Mukkur N. Subramanian and District Collector Vijay Pingale were among those present at the temple.