Theni: The people of Palarpatti village are celebrating Pongal for the 26th year in honour of John Penny Quick, the builder of the Mullaiperiyar Dam.
The birthday of John Penny Quick, the engineer who built the Mullaiperiyar Dam, which quenches the thirst of the people of the southern district, is celebrated tomorrow, January 15. Every year, on the occasion of his birthday, the people of five districts including Theni and Madurai, celebrate his birthday in a special way by celebrating Pongal.
Accordingly, on the occasion of John Penny Quick's 184th birthday, the people of Palarpatti village in Theni district have celebrated Pongal for the 26th year in his honour. In this, all the villagers of Palarpatti came together with musical instruments, playing the devarattam, and silambattam, carrying the image of Penny Quick with bulls and cows in their hands and carrying the Pongal pot in their hands.
In this, women who had come from Malaysia also joined the procession. After that, all the villagers celebrated Pongal together in front of the John Penny Quick Memorial Hall in the centre of the village. Then, they garlanded the image of Lord Penny Quick and offered Deeparadhanas to pay their respects and worship.
Regarding this, another person who came from Malaysia said, “I have never seen such a great Pongal celebration. While I did not know about Penny Quick, after visiting the Mullaiperiyar Dam, I came to know about the glory of Penny Quick. The devarattam of the villagers has impressed me. I also want to dance. I want to come and participate with my family next year,” he said.
