22 ft x 14 ft flag hoisted to mark start of 11 day fest

A massive 22 feet by 14 foot holy flag was hoisted at Shrine Baslica at Vailankanni in the district today to mark the commencement of the 11 day annual festival.
Thousands of devotees from various parts of the country witnessed the holy event.
The Bishop of Thanjavur Dr M Devadass Ambrose presided over the flag hoisting ceremony.
After special prayers, the huge flag was taken in a procession around the church and hoisted later. Following this ceremony, holy mass, litany and benediction were conducted, church officials said.
During the festival days holy mass will be conducted at the main shrine and high mass in Tamil, Marathi, English, Konkani, Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi at the Basilica from morning till evening.

From August 30 to September 7, flag will be hoisted every day at 12 noon. Similarly, car procession will be held on all days at 8 PM.
The most important event, 'Birthday of the Lady of Good Health' and Chariot Procession will take place on September 8.