MYTRAVELCSP

History –

The well renowned Varadaraja Perumal Temple which is otherwise called as Hastagiri or Attiyuran is considered to be one among the temple of 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Lord Vishnu is located in the holy city of Kanchipuram. It is believed that Alwars(Vaishanava Saints) have sung hymns on the glory of the Lord of the Temple.
The Temple tank- Anantha Saras which is located on the northside of 100 pillar hall consists of two Mandapams.

The idol of Lord Athivaradharajar in reclining posture,made of Athi(Fig) Wood is preserved inside a Silver casket and immersed beneath the water on the south side Manadapam of the Ananthasaras Pond.

The lord Athi Varadar is taken out every 40 years for worship. Previously it is believed that the Athi Varadar Festival was held on the following dates 18/8/1854, 13/6/1892, 12/7/1937, 2/7/1979. Since after the last event, the Athi Varadar raising event is happening this year on July 1st 2019.

When to visit –
The majestic event, Raising of Lord Athi Varadar starts from 1st July to 17th August 2019. The Idol is taken out from the temple tank on 1st July and placed outside for public worship in Vasantha Mandapam for a period of 48 days. It is said that devotees can worship the lord in both reclining posture for 24 days and standing posture on remaining days. No Devotees will be allowed to see the upheaving process of Lord Athi Varadar from Temple tank.

Time to visit – 
On the occasion of this event, it is expected that lakh number of devotees would visit the temple. Hence the authorities have allocated a special darshan time to local people (Kanchipuram District) and outsiders.

Dates to avoid – 
• July 14, 15, 16 – For VIPs and VVIPs.
• July 20 – Expected visit of Tamil Nadu Governer.

Darshan Ticket Cost – 
General and Special Darshan- Two tiers have been arranged in the temple premises for the devotees.
• General Darshan Ticket Free/No Cost
• Special Darshan Ticket- Rs.50 per head
• Sahasranama Darshan ticket costs Rs.500 per head and the timing would be from 11AM to 12PM and 5PM to 6PM.

Darshan timing for Outsiders – 
Devotees apart from Kanchipuram Taluk are allowed to see Lord Athi Varadar from 6AM to 2PM and 3PM to 5PM

Special Darshan Timings and Date for Devotees from Kanchipuram Taluk – 
Devotees who hail from Kanchipuram Taluk can have special darshan of Lord Athi Varadar in Vasantha Mandapam from 5pm to 8Pm on below mentioned dates. People are requested to bring the Aadhar card for this evening darshan as they will be allowed only once if their Aadhar card has been scanned. Subsequently, if devotees are willing to worship the lord again, they can have darshan through General or Special Queue.

Special Darshan Dates – 
• July 1st to 3rd 3 Days
• July 12th to 24th 13 Days
• August 5th to 12th 8 days
• August 16th to 17th 2days

Modes of transportation –
Parking Location and Facilities:
Arrangements have been made for parking the private car and two-wheeler of pilgrims visiting the temple at pachaiyappan College (Nazarathpet), Tiruveedipallam, Lala Estate (City) and Olimugamathupet.

Airways –
Nearest Airport- Chennai

TNSTC Bus Operation Details – 
In Kanchipuram, temporary bus stations have been set up at three locations – Orikkai, Olimugamathupet and Pachaippan College Complex.
20 buses are operated per minute from the temporary bus station to the temple area. Buses plying to Chennai, Thiruvallur, Thiruthani, Poonthamalli, Tirupati and Bangalore will take from Olimugamathupet bus stand.
Buses plying to Uttiramerur, Vandavasi, Tindivanam, Trichy, Puducherry and Cheyyaru, Thiruvannamalai, will take  from the Orikkai bus stand.
Buses plying to Tambaram, Chengalpattu, Kalpakkam and Mamallapuram will reach Central Bus Station via Nattapettai and Vaiyavur.

Railways – 
Nearest railway station- Kanchipuram
In addition to this, pilgrims travelling from other parts of the state can make use of the following electric train schedules to reach kanchipuram.

Basic facilities – 

Where to eat?
Only those who have obtained approval from district administration can distribute free food to pilgrims. Food samples will be tested by the respective authorities. Similarly, food security ocials have inspected about 300 restaurants in Kanchipuram and the foods from those restaurants will be tested daily.

Where to stay?
With respect to the occasion, Hotel booking is allowed only for 12 hours, rooms in most hotels are booked. Therefore, charitable organizations are making arrangements for wedding halls to accommodate the Pilgrims
from other states.

Drinking Water – 
For the benefit of pilgrims,Clean drinking water is provided in temporary bus and parking areas. There are 2 purifiers placed inside the temple and 4 purifiers on the outside. Six new refineries have been installed in
major parts of the city. A 5,000-litre capacity tank of drinking water will be kept inside the temple and 10 outside the temple and the 2,000-litre will be set up in 85 locations in the city.

Public Toilets – 
In Kanchipuram Municipality,70 Public toilets are already in use. Also, it has been planned to add an additional 11 to 22 temporary toilets in each of the 4 mada streets around the temple. Apart from this, arrangements are made to set up 36 toilets in the Little Kanchipuram and 92 toilets in the large Kanchipuram.

First Aid – 
The health department has decided to set up 5 medical teams inside the temple and 4 medical teams outside the temple. Provision of temporary medical rooms with a 24-hour doctor facility and 108 ambulances insignificant areas has been arranged.

 

Note – 

All these information collated and shared from Kanchipuram Collector Office 

Documentation by:

• Divya. A

• Praveen. S

• Senthil Murugasan.

 News journals 

Office of the honorable collector- Kanchipuram Dist.