Visakhapatnam: Common devotees rue gruelling wait for 'Nijaroopa Darshan'

Visakhapatnam: After viewing 'Nijaroopa' darshan at Simhachalam on Sunday, many expressed disappointment over the long wait they had to endure for hours at Simhachalam.

Even for those who visit the temple every year, the visit this year turned out to be a bitter experience.

After viewing 'Nijaroopa' darshan, pontiff of Visakha Sri Sarada Peetham Swaroopanandendra Saraswati mentioned that he had never witnessed Chandanotsavam in such disarray so far.

Expressing ire over the poor arrangements made by the authorities concerned, the pontiff said it reflected the poor management of the crowds who were stuck for hours in the queue lines. "For the first time, I regretted why I had come for Chandanotsavam.

The presiding deity of Simhachalam is for the poor. Unfortunately, though there is an apparent presence of police personnel all along the shrine, including sanctum sanctorum, the darshan appeared to be made convenient only for the VVIPs. It's very disheartening to watch the plight of the common devotees who came along with children to view 'nijaroopa' darshan and ended up waiting for hours in the premises," the pontiff conveyed.

Later, the peetham pontiff clarified that he only tried to put forth the lapses of the district administration and concerned officials who failed to organise the festival in a hassle-free manner and his statements were not meant to bring the failure of the state government per se.

Meanwhile, north constituency MLA Ganta Srinivasa Rao took to Twitter to express his disappointment over the poor management of the festival. "The annual festival is considered very auspicious as well as prestigious. However, the organisation of the festival this year failed in all aspects. Traffic went for a toss right from the ghat road as motorists were made to wait for hours long. No basic facilities were provided for common devotees, including drinking water supply," Ganta posted on his official Twitter handle.

Former advisor to Endowments Department Cheruvu Ramakotaiah pointed out that a host of meetings held before Chandanotsavam turned out to be a complete failure. "Even there were a number of ministers, including endowments, District Collector, IAS and IPS officers, the festival miserably failed this time," he said.