From Traditional Safes To Modern Security Solutions, Dindigul's Lock-making Legacy

Dindigul, a city in Tamil Nadu, has long been known for its outstanding mechanisms in the lock-making industry. Iron safety lockers constructed in Dindigul are mostly used in places like temples, jewellers, pawnshops, commercial establishments, etc. According to the Local Tamil Nadu, these iron vaults are entrusted for the safety of the jewels in temples and the offerings made by devotees. The iron safety lockers manufactured in Dindigul are exported to many states like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Karnataka, etc. Not only in India, there is a significant demand for these lockers in foreign countries as well. Made of iron bars and iron, the iron vaults in Dindigul assure a high amount of safety as they cannot be broken easily.

With time, the construction of the iron safety locker and the safety deposit boxes, which were done traditionally has changed over time. Now, it has incorporated many modern facilities. These safes are manufactured in various models, from key lock model safes to number locks and fingerprint smart locks. What makes these safes a solid protection against the robbers? The answer is the famous hand-made Dindigul lock system which uses a 4mm to 6mm thick hardened steel to construct this safe. This thick-hardened steel ensures that absolutely no one will be able to barge in these vaults.

Apart from the vaults, the artisans in Dindigul also specialise in making iron coins and have provided their services in manufacturing these for various temples. These temples include Arulmigu Sri Kottai Mariyamman Temple and Thiruchendur Murugan Temple. The other temples that took the help of the Dindigul artisans are the Thirupathi Ezhumalai Venkatesa temple and Srirangam Perumal Temple.

Besides Dindigul, the iron vaults in the Chettinad are also quite strong, and cannot be easily cracked in. The key to unlock this vault has also not been made to date. As of now, there are no reports on whether the key has been made to date or not.

In an earlier interview with The Hindu, K Muthuveeran, an artisan from the Nallampatti village had shed light on Dindigul’s popularity in making locks. According to him, people come here to get duplicate keys for the 200-year-old locks as well.