The Penang Hindu Endowments Board confirms the gold chariot will lead the Thaipusam procession, followed by the silver chariot, with no changes to the schedule
GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Hindu Endowments Board has announced that the gold chariot procession in conjunction with Thaipusam will begin first followed by the silver chariot procession according to tradition without any changes as claimed by certain parties.
The board’s chairman RSN Rayer confirmed the matter, stating that it was normal for the golden chariot to begin before the silver chariot and that it had been agreed upon previously with the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) in conjunction with Thaipusam this Sunday.
“The police have given their approval for the golden chariot to begin from the temple at Queen Street at 6 am, but we have made preparations to start earlier around 5.30 am so that all prayers and rituals can be conducted properly.
“There are no changes to the itinerary, and we are working closely with them (the silver chariot trustees) to ensure everything goes smoothly,” he said at a media conference here today to address claims that the silver chariot procession would precede the gold chariot procession tomorrow.
The Penang Hindu Endowments Board manages the gold chariot while the Nattukotai Chettiar Temple manages the silver chariot.
Rayer, who is also Jelutong MP, said that the decision for the Thaneer Panthal stalls to stop playing all music at 11 pm on Sunday had been discussed and agreed upon with stall operators, with the only exception being the central sound system managed by the temple management.
“Music allowed after 11 pm is religious music via the central sound system with the volume reduced in stages till midnight, while Thaneer Panthal stalls with their own sound systems must shut down completely,” he added.
The decision also took into account safety considerations, including the need of an emergency route for ambulances, crowd management and to avoid untoward incidents.
Rayer also said that the gold chariot procession can be watched live via the tracking app Pantau 3.0, allowing Hindu devotees and the public to monitor the procession in real time and enable accurate geospatial tracking throughout the route.
“Pantau was developed under the Penang Digitalisation Initiative and was introduced during the 2024 Thaipusam, with over 17,000 users and was expanded last year, attracting 37,000 users and adding new features such as road closure information, updates on the festival and locations of focus,” he added.
