Tiruchirapalli (Tamil Nadu), Apr 26 (UNI) Thousands of devotees took part in the annual ‘Chithirai Therottam’ (temple car festival) of the world-renowned Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple – the first and foremost among 108 ‘Divya Desams’ (temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu) at Srirangam here on Saturday.

Religious fervour permeated the temple town of Srirangam, as ‘Lord Namperumal’, the processional deity, was taken out from the sanctum sanctorum in a procession in the early hours to the aesthetically decorated big temple car that was pulled by the devotees amid chants of ‘Ranga Ranga’ and ‘Govinda Govinda’ through the four Chithirai streets around the temple.

Special pujas were performed to the presiding deity Sri Ranganathaswamy on the occasion of the car festival.

The Chithirai car festival, also known as the ‘Viruppan Thirunal Car Festival’, commenced on April 18 with the hoisting of the holy flag inside the temple premises.

The car festival celebrated in the Tamil month of “Chithirai” is one of the important events being held every year that attracts devotees from various parts of the state.

A large number of police personnel were deployed around the procession route to ensure that the car reached its destination without any hindrance.

UNI GSM ARN