Velankanni festival ends with feast mass: The Hindu (08.09.2007, Saturday)
ALL AGLOW: Devotees at the car
procession at Velankanni in Nagapattinam district on Friday night.
NAGAPATTINAM: The 11-day annual feast festival of Shrine Basilica of ‘Our Lady of Health’ at Velankanni, near here, concluded on Saturday with the celebration of the birthday of ‘Our Blessed Mother’ and lowering of the Our Lady’s holy flag.
A concelebrated feast mass was conducted in the morning at the Shrine Basilica by Most Rev. M. Devadass Ambrose, Bishop of Thanjavur.
On Friday night, lakhs of devotees from several parts of the country witnessed the illuminated feast car procession of Shrine Velankanni, the main event of the annual feast festival .
A senior police official told The Hindu on Saturday that no untoward incident was reported during the 11-day festival.
Elaborate security and other arrangements were made for the devotees.
Hundreds witness shrine car procession: The Hindu (07.09.2007, Friday)
NAGAPATTINAM: Lakhs of devotees and pilgrims on Friday witnessed the ‘Velankanni Matha’ illuminated feast car procession, the main event of the 11-day annual feast festival of ‘Our Lady of Health’ that began on August 29. The car procession started from the entrance of the main shrine.
Elaborate security arrangements were in place for the car festival. The police kept a vigil throughout Velankanni township and in Nagapattinam town to prevent any untoward incident.
Earlier in the evening, concelebrated mass was attended by a large number of devotees at the Shrine Basilica auditorium. Most Rev. M. Devadass Ambrose, Bishop of Thanjavur, presided over the mass. Several dignitaries took part.
Thousands of devotees attended the litany and benediction and holy mass in various languages for the last one week. Holy mass and blessing of the sick with the statue of Our Lady of Health was also conducted at the main shrine.
High mass in Tamil, Marathi, English, Konkani, Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi were also conducted in the Basilica from morning till evening. Holy mass in Tamil was performed everyday at Our Lady’s Tank early in the morning during the festival.
The festival concludes on Saturday with lowering of Our Lady’s Flag.
Special Trains For Velankanni Festival
Shri R. Velu, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Railways, has ordered to run the following special trains to clear the extra
rush of passengers.
1)
1. Tiruvarur – Chennai Egmore –
Tiruvarur Specials: Train No.0678 Tiruvarur – Chennai Egmore Special will leave
Tiruvarur at 21.30 hrs. on 02.09.2007 and 08.09.2007 and arrive
Chennai Egmore at 06.30 hrs. the next day. Train No. 0677 Chennai Egmore –
Tiruvarur Special will leave Chennai Egmore at 19.00 hrs. on
03.09.2007 and arrive Tiruvarur at 04.00 hrs. the next day. The
composition of the trains will be 2 AC 2-tier, 2
AC 3-tier, 11 Sleeper Class, 2 General Second Class and 2
luggage-cum-brake van coaches. The trains will stop at Thanjavur,
Vriddhachalam, Villupuram, Tindivanam, Chengalpattu and Tambaram.
Train No. 0678 will stop at Mambalam also.
2)
2. Chennai Egmore –
23.00 hrs. on 09.09.2007 and arrive
AC 2-tier, 2 AC 3-tier, 11
Sleeper Class, 2
General Second Class and 2 luggage-cum-brake van coaches. The train
will stop at Tambaram, Chengalpattu, Tindivanam, Villupuram and
Vriddhachalam.
3)
3. Tuticorin
– Tiruvarur – Tuticorin Specials: Train No.0682 Tuticorin – Tiruvarur Special will leave Tuticorin at 17.30 hrs. on 07.09.2007 and arrive Tiruvarur
at 04.00 hrs. the next day. In the return direction, Train No.0681
Tiruvarur – Tuticorin special will leave Tiruvarur at 22.30 hrs. on
08.09.2007 and arrive Tuticorin at 07.30 hrs. the next day.
The composition of the trains will be 1 AC 2-tier, 1 AC 3-tier, 10
Sleeper Class, 3 General Second Class and 2 luggage-cum-brake van
coaches. The trains will stop at Vanchi Maniyachchi, Kovilpatti,
Sattur, Virudhunagar,
Dindigul, Tiruchchirappallli and Thanjavur.
Advance reservation for Train No. 0678 on 02.09.2007 and Train
No.0677 on 03.09.2007 will commence on 31.08.2007.
FOR ALL OTHER TRAINS ADVANCE RESERVATION WILL COMMENCE
01.09.2007.
4)
Tiruvarur
Special will leave
at 20.45 hrs. In the return direction, Train No.0603 Tiruvarur –
AC 2-tier, 2 AC 3-tier, 11 Sleeper Class, 2 General Second Class and 2 luggage-cum-brake van coaches. The
trains will stop at Tiruverumbur, Budalur and Thanjavur.
Annai Velankanni festival commences on Wednesday, 29th Aug
2007 (Tuesday, Aug 28,
2007: The Hindu )
The annual festival celebrating the birth of ‘Our
Lady of Health’ at Annai Velankanni Church in Besant Nagar will
begin on Wednesday.
Over one lakh devotees are expected to visit the
shrine on September 7 for the ‘car festival’. The flag will be
hoisted on Wednesday and pilgrims will undertake a journey on foot
from Little Mount, rector and parish priest Francis Michael told
press persons here on Monday.
A blood donation camp has also been scheduled
between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Sunday. The 11-day-long festival will
conclude on September 8. A request has gone out for special buses to
transport pilgrims to the church from various parts of the city on
Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday and next Thursday to Saturday, he said.
The church authorities have also been helped by
various governmental authorities, which have made appropriate
traffic arrangements to prevent congestion when the processions are
taken out.
The festival and the shrine have traditionally
drawn people of all faiths, the priest said.
Velankanni, August 27 (Chennai Online):
About 15 lakh pilgrims are expected to visit the basilica here
during the 10-day annual festival beginning on August 29. Nagapattinam district collector S Jawahar visited Velankanni
yesterday and inspected the arrangements made in connection with the
festival of Annai Arogya Matha of the Shrine Basilica of Our Lady of
Health.
Speaking to mediapersons,
Jawahar said all arrangements have been made at Velankanni by the
district administration.About 1,750 police personnel under the
supervision of Kalpana Naick, Superintendent of Police, Nagapattinam
would be deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
As a precautionary measure, 172 fire servicemen and 20 rescue
persons would also be posted. (Agencies)
Elaborate arrangements for the Velankanni
Festival (The Hindu, Sunday, Aug 12, 2007)
Nagapattinam: Elaborate arrangements are being
made for a 11-day annual feast festival of ‘Our Lady of Health’,
popularly called as ‘Annai Velankanni Matha’ festival that begins on
August 29 with a flag procession and hoisting of the holy flag.
Rev. Fr. P. Xavier, Rector of Velankanni Church
said on Saturday that Most Rev. Dr. M. Devadass Ambrose, Bishop of
Thanjavur, would hoist the holy flag at the Shrine’s Basilica at
Velankanni, located on the shores of Baby of Bengal, about 10 km
south of Nagapattinam.
Thousands of pilgrims and devotees from all over
the country are expected to attend the first day litany, benediction
and holy mass in Tamil.
Holy mass, blessing of the sick with the statue
of Our Lady of Health will be conducted at the main shrine. High
mass in Tamil, Marathi, English, Konkani, Malayalam, Telugu and
Hindu will be conducted in the Basilica from morning till evening
and Holy Mass in Tamil at Our Lady’s Tank at 6 a.m. during the
festival days.
The festival concludes on September 8 with the
celebration of the birthday of the Blessed Mother Shrine Velankanni.
The main illuminated chariot procession carrying the statue of the
Holy Mother will be taken out on Velankanni Basilica campus on
Sept.7.
Meanwhile, the Nagapattinam district
administration and the police are making arrangements, including
transport, sanitation, protected drinking water supply, to lakhs of
pilgrims expected for the festival.