Devotees will not be allowed to climb the Arunachala Hills near Arunachaleswara temple in Tiruvannamalai town on the occasion of Maha Deepam on December 3, 2025, Revenue and forest officials said.
As the Northeast monsoon commenced, the intensity of rain is expected to gain momentum in the coming weeks, bringing heavy downpour in the temple town.
Revenue officials said that this will be the second year to ban devotees from climbing the hills on Maha Deepam day. In 2024, the ban came into force after seven persons, including children, died in a landslip that was triggered by cyclone Fengal in the hills.
Following the landslip incident, an eight-member expert team of the State government, led by Professor K. Premalatha, Head, Centre for Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Anna University, Chennai, climbed the 2,668 feet-high hillock with a team of police, forest and revenue officials to assess the condition of the hills. A report was submitted to the State government.
Officials said that safety of climbers was taken into consideration as the terrain on the hills was still wet and loose. In October, the State Highways Department demolished a huge boulder, around 20 tonnes, in the hillock as officials feared that the rock could fall due to rain.
