Incidents of theft drop at Nallur festival

[TamilNet, Saturday, 03 September 2005, 08:13 GMT]
Although incidents of theft of jewellery amounting to sixty gold sovereigns were reported to the Nallur Pradeshya sabha offices located at the temple premises during the Nallur Kandaswamy temple chariot festival Friday, adminstraters said that this was a welcome decrease from incidents of last year when more than 75 people were victims to thefts of nearly 200 gold sovereigns.

Hindu women customarily wear expensive dresses and showcase their jewellery during temple festivals. Professional thieves operate during the festivities, especially during crowded chariot festival, snipping out expensive jewellery from unsuspecting devotees.

Sri Lanka Police were conspicuoulsy absent during the Nallur festivals this year, and general order was maintained by St Johns ambulance, Red Cross and Peoples Welfare organization which operated within the security framework setup by a Special Safety committee.