At 146 feet, TN's Murugan statue tallest in world

Chennai: A 146-foot statue of Lord Murugan, claimed to be the world's tallest Murugan statue, has been unveiled in Tamil Nadu's Salem district.

Located at Sri Muthumalai Murugan Thirukovil at Ethapur on the Salem-Chennai national highway, the statue was consecrated on Wednesday, following which devotees were allowed darshan.

Natarajan Sridhar, chairman of the Sri Muthumalai Murugan Trust, which built the statue, said it took around six years to complete the construction. "The Murugan statue in Malaysia (near Batu Caves in Kuala Lumpur) was considered the tallest in the world, but now the one in our country is the tallest. We started the work for the statue in 2016. We engaged Tiruvarur Thiagarajan, the same sculptor who constructed the Murugan temple in Malaysia in 2006," he said.

Sridhar said the idea behind the statue was to bring more laurels to the country. "He (Lord Murugan) wanted to arise here and it has happened," he added.

Hundreds of devotees witnessed a kumbhabhishekam ceremony, during which rose petals were showered from a helicopter on the statue and was followed by a feast.