Tokyo, December 13 (EFE). – The Wakayama Electric Railway Company held a funeral this Saturday for Nitama, the second cat to serve as head of Kishi Station, a symbolic position that has become a major tourist attraction and is linked to the financial rescue of this local railway operator in western Japan.
Nitama died on November 20 at the age of 15 and his Shinto-style funeral was held at Kishi Station in Kinokawa City, Wakayama Prefecture, the railway company previously announced.
Many devotees came to the station to pay tribute to the calico cat, which has become a local icon. According to local news agency Kyodo, Wakayama Electric Railway President Mitsunobu Kojima posthumously awarded her the appointment of “special honorary station master” during the ceremony.
The funeral altar was filled with flowers, letters and cat food, along with a photo of Nitama in a cap and gown, while the cat Yontama, the current acting station manager, also attended the event, according to the agency.
Nitama (“Tama II” in Japanese) was appointed head of Kishi Station in 2015, succeeding Tama, the famous cat who started this unique tradition.
Tama was appointed station manager in 2007 when the railway line was on the verge of bankruptcy. Its unexpected popularity attracted thousands of visitors and, according to the company, increased the number of passengers by around 20%, making it a symbol of local tourism and the operator’s “savior”.
The cat’s success prompted other Japanese companies to appoint various animals as station chiefs.
In Japan, such figures, known as “maneki-neko” (“welcoming cat”), are, according to popular belief, an amulet that brings prosperity to business owners. EFE
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