Alagarkoil priests upset as plate offerings moved to hundi
At the Pathinettampadi Karuppanaswamy shrine inside the Kallazhagar Temple at Alagarkoil in Madurai district, a new practice has triggered discontent among priests and devotees. Temple staff have been collecting offerings that fall into priests’ plates and depositing them into the shrine’s hundi (donation box). Devotees consider Karuppanaswamy their family deity, and it is customary to offer money on the steps or near the shrine doors as a vow, popularly known as “putting money on the steps.” To streamline collections, the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) administration had earlier installed four hundis on both sides in front of the shrine, with the proceeds used for temple development works.
