Overhead power lines in 7 Kumbakonam temples to go underground
The UG cable proposal was mooted after the tragic electrocution of 11 people during a temple car festival in Thanjavur in 2022.
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CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Ltd (TNPDCL) has invited tenders to convert the overhead power lines in seven temples in Kumbakonam into underground cables to prevent electrocution incidents.
Nageswaran temple, Mukeshwarar temple, Gowthameshwarar temple, Sarangapani Someswaran temple, Chakkarapani temple, Veerasaivamadam and Chakkarapani temple are places around which the OH lines will be converted to UG cables.
To avoid accidents during temple car festivals and ensure the safety of devotees, the Electricity Minister announced in the State assembly last year that conversion works in the temple car streets in 13 temples in Thanjavur and Kumbakonam would be taken up.
A senior official of TNPDCL said all OH lines on these streets will be converted into UG cables. “During the temple car festivals, power supply is switched off to avoid electrocution. If we convert the OHT lines into UG, it will avoid electrocution. Also, it would negate the need for the switching off the power supply,” the official added.
The utility has already taken up conversion of OHT lines into UG in 14 temples across the State including Nelliappar temple in Tirunelveli, Sriranganathar temple in Srirangam, Koniamman temple in Coimbatore, Subramaniya Swamy temple in Thiruparankundram, Ardhanareeswarar temple in Tiruchengode, and Ekambareswarar Temple, Varadharaja Perumal Temple and Kanchi Kamatchi Amman temple in Kancheepuram.
The UG cable proposal was mooted after the tragic electrocution of 11 people during a temple car festival in Thanjavur in 2022.
