Hours after a Kerala High Court order banned the use of high-decibel fireworks in the night, two major Devaswoms in Thrissur on Tuesday sought “higher level” intervention to organise the state’s famous Thrissur Pooram, festivities for which commenced on Monday.
A joint meeting of office bearers of Paramekkavu and Thiruvambadi Devaswoms held in Thrissur said it will be forced to avoid the major attractions of the Pooram – processions of majestically caparisoned elephants, changing of sequined parasols and fireworks display – “unless there is a higher-level intervention to organise it in a traditional way.”
“If it is organised as a ritual, there will be only one elephant for the purpose,” Thiruvambadi Devaswom president Madhavankutty told reporters in Thrissur.
Devaswom sources said they were planning to apprise the high court of an earlier Supreme Court verdict on the conduct of the Pooram festival.
The meeting was also held against the backdrop of the Thrissur City Police Commissioner issuing notices to the Devaswoms to ensure that no chemicals such as potassium chlorate, commonly used for fireworks as part of Pooram festival, be used during this year’s Pooram festival, culminating on 17 April.
The police chief warned that the Devaswoms presidents will be held responsible if the law is violated.
The notices were issued following the court order directing a ban on the use of sound-generating fireworks between sunset and sunrise in places of worship.
With the Kollam temple tragedy bringing to focus safety issues, the Thrissur district administration had on Tuesday imposed regulations including use of low-decibel crackers.
The administration had decided to give sanction to two temple devaswoms (boards) to use a total of 4,000 kg low decibel fire crackers for the 17 April finale of Pooram festival.
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