Chellach Channithi Temple Chariot festival held

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 24 August 2010, 07:35 GMT]
Thousands of devotees from all parts of Sri Lanka took part in the annual Thear (Chariot) festival Monday of the historic Tho'ndaimaanaa'ru Chellach Channithi Murukan temple located to west of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) High Security Zone in Valikaamam North. During war SLA soldiers had set fire to the properties of the temple worth millions of rupees. The temple had been restored to its original state recently, sources in Jaffna said

Though there had been problems in conducting the festivals of the temple in the recent past Thear festival was celebrated in a quiet manner Monday.

The ancient Chellach Channithi temple in Jaffna district was first destroyed by the Portuguese in 16th century B.C.

It was renovated during the Dutch period, according historian late Mr. Kula Sabanathan’s research book “ Thondaimaanaa'ru Temple History.”