Hundreds of thousands of Buddhist devotees have realised their dream of viewing the sacred tooth relic up close and paying homage to it during the past several days at the ongoing Dalada Vandana exhibition in Kandy. They have expressed their gratitude to the organisers of the holy event––and rightly so.
Government propagandists have sought to help the ruling NPP coalition gain political mileage from the relic exposition in the run-up to the local government elections. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who, during his Opposition days, used to condemn political leaders for visiting holy shrines, such as the Dalada Maligawa, with television crews in tow, opened Dalada Vandana, and received much publicity.
The government categorically stated that there would be no VIP queues for Dalada Vandana, and no devotee would be given preferential treatment, unlike in the past. But complaints abound that many influential people were granted privileged access to the Dalada Maligawa, while ordinary devotees were languishing in long queues for days.
The situation in Kandy has taken a turn that the government, municipal officials, health authorities and the police apparently did not bargain for. The Hill Capital is groaning, overwhelmed by the sheer number of visitors flocking there. Devotees are complaining of the lack of food, water and sanitary facilities in Kandy, which, according to media reports, is strewn with garbage, and has toilets overflowing in some areas. The government and Kandy municipal officials should have had plans ready to face such an eventuality. It is hoped that public health officials will go all out to prevent disease outbreaks.
The availability of free food and sanitary facilities, temporarily sheltered walkways, etc., for pilgrims in Kandy received wide publicity on the first day of Dalada Vandana, and it is only natural that so many people converged to the sacred city, expecting a comfortable stay there. Yesterday, the police and state officials had to urge devotees to stop travelling to Kandy, which is heavily congested and cannot take any more visitors, and those who are already there will have to spend about two days to enter the Dalada Maligawa.
The police have taken action to prevent buses, etc., carrying devotees from entering the Kandy city, we are told. That is the only way they can prevent the city from becoming even more congested and chaotic. But it has not been possible to stop people from reaching the city, and one can only hope that the police and the armed forces will succeed in carrying out crowd control effectively, and there will be no stampede in the city.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been waiting in several queues stretching for about 10 km each for the past three days or so to get a close glimpse of the sacred tooth relic and pay homage to it. Chances are that not all of them will be lucky enough to do so, and how people will react in the case of being turned away remains to be seen. Sri Lankans tend to turn aggressive at the drop of a hat, and this is something the police and the security forces will have to take cognisance of.
A mega event like a relic exposition that attracts huge crowds requires several months of planning. But the government wanted Dalada Vandana held fast for obvious reasons, and the Kandy has been plunged into chaos.
Meanwhile, there has been a proposal to hold Dalada Vandana annually. While this idea may resonate deeply with Buddhist devotees, the question remains whether the government, the custodians of the Sri Dalada Maligawa, the Kandy municipal authorities and the police are up to the gargantuan task—especially given their responsibility for organising the annual Dalada Perahera. Crucial factors such as costs and the need for extraordinary security arrangements must also be taken into consideration.
