New Year celebrations conclude peacefully in Salem, Namakkal districts

New Year celebrations, on Thursday (January 1, 2026), concluded peacefully in Salem and Namakkal districts.

Due to New Year celebrations, the Salem City police deployed 850 police personnel at important locations such as the New Bus Stand, Old Bus Stand, Collectorate, Four Roads, Five Roads, and before temples and churches. The police also conducted vehicle checks at junctions that connects Salem Corporation with the National highways. In Salem district, 900 police personnel were deployed for crowd control and to prevent accidents at important locations.

People gathered at temples from the early hours of Thursday to offer prayers. At Kottai Mariamman Temple, Kottai Perumal Temple, Rajaganapathi Temple, and Sugavaneswarar Temple, people waited in long queues to offer their prayers. At the Tiruchengode Arthanareeswarar temple in Namakkal district, thousands gathered to offer prayers from 3 a.m. Notably, Prakash, a resident of Suriyampalayam near Tiruchengode, performed 1,300 push-ups in each step at the Arthanareeswarar temple to create awareness among youth about exercise.

At Yercaud, people gathered in large numbers from Wednesday evening (December 31, 2025) and celebrated the new year. The Botanical Garden, Ladies Seat, Gents Seat, Pagoda Point, Rose Garden, Anna Park, Kiliyur Falls, and Shervaroyan Temple were filled with people on Thursday. Due to the large footfall in Yercaud, police conducted vehicle checks at the foothills, verified the hotel or resort booking receipts and allowed the tourists to enter the hill station.

At the Kurumbapatti Zoological Park, thousands of people gathered, and due to the heavy crowd, the staff allowed visitors to buy entrance tickets in phases.