As Kaanum Pongal was celebrated on Monday, crowds thronged popular tourism spots across the district. Police were deployed at various places for providing security and for managing the crowd.
The Vellore Fort, its park and the Government Museum, located inside the fort, saw a huge flow of people.
Another place that saw crowds was the Amirthi zoo. An official of the Forest Department said there was a steady flow of visitors to Amirthi from morning. By 4 p.m. the zoo received 6,000 visitors, he added.
An official at the museum said the number of visitors was double the daily average. At least 500 to 600 people visited the museum on Monday.
With Pongal being celebrated over the weekend, several tourists, especially from Chennai, reached Yelagiri for a holiday. Visitors from in and around the district visited the hill on Monday.
To help travel without hassles, the Vellore region of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation operated special buses from Vellore to Sripuram (Golden Temple) and Vellore to Amirthi.
An official said 75 buses left Vellore with commuters to Sripuram while 50 buses had departed from Vellore to Amirthi. He said the special buses received good patronage. “There was good crowd for the special buses, especially those plying to Sripuram,” he said.
