Richest temple in the world but poor security systems; gold theft because CCTV camera in Padmanabhaswamy temple did not work

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It is believed that the malfunctioning CCTV camera in front of the strong room of the Padmanabhaswamy temple, where gold worth crores is kept, is what led to the gold rod being stolen.

A 13-sovereign gold rod kept in the strong room went missing the other day and was later found buried in the sand inside the temple. Those concerned do not show any caution to ensure that the security systems are working properly every day. The camera in the Northern Nada of the temple, from where the rod was found buried in the sand, was also non-functional.

The investigation team suspects that someone who clearly knew that there was no camera here had buried the rod in the sand. When a metal detector was used to search the same place the other day, nothing was found. The gold rod was found on Sunday evening near the north gate, 30 meters away from the strong room where the gold was wrapped. The rod was found buried in the sand in the courtyard inside the temple.

It was discovered that 13 sovereign gold pieces were missing on Saturday, when the gold was taken from the strong room for temple work and weighed. The police questioned eight people. Three workers who are doing the job of covering the sanctum sanctorum in gold and five temple employees were questioned in detail. Some of them are under suspicion.

Golden rod was not buried

The police say the golden rod that went missing from the temple and was later found was not buried in the sand. The golden rod was found covered in sand. It was not found at a great depth. It is not possible to dig a single foot deep hole in this sand without the help of tools. This is also a place that attracts people's attention.