Safety boost for Batu Caves pilgrims

FOUR Indian companies and NGOs in Rawang, Selangor, will work together to ensure the safety of Hindus who undertake paathayathra or pilgrimage on foot to Batu Caves for Thaipusam, Makkal Osai reported.

Ehsan Jaya Transport chairman Datuk Suresh Rao said they would work with Pertubuhan Kebajikan Mesra Rawang Selangor, Itosu-ryu Karatedo Malaysia and Rawang Motorsport Club to assist the pilgrims.

Five tents will be set up, with one in Rawang as the gathering and starting point and four more along the way. The pilgrims can stop at any of the tents to rest or get assistance from the people manning them.

Motorcyclists will also accompany groups of pilgrims while they are on the roads and highways to ensure their safety.

Devotees from Batang Kali, Serendah, Rawang and surrounding areas are expected to undertake the pilgrimage to Batu Caves beginning Jan 20 in conjunction with Thaipusam the following day.

> The Thennindhiya Nathigal Inaippu Vivasayigal Sangam (National-South India Rivers Linking Farmers Association) staged a gruesome protest using human skulls to demand payment for their crops, Tamil dailies reported.

The protest, which started on Jan 7, put forward eight demands including compensation for their sugar cane yield, which has been unpaid by the processing plant for nearly two years.

After initial negotiations with the authorities failed, the farmers staged the protest while wearing garlands made of human skulls and bones.