Day 2: Thousands miss darshan of Lord

Busy shifting focus on security arrangements, authorities fail to provide amenities to visiting devotees

Bhadrachalam (Khammam): A large number of pilgrims, who thronged the Godavari Pushkar Ghats abutting Sri Sita Ramachandra Swamy temple in Bhadrachalam, had to go back home without having the darshan of the Lord Rama on Wednesday as the precincts of the shrine is too small to accommodate them or to streamline the queues.

The authorities had taken precautionary measures to prevent any untoward incident especially in the wake of Rajahmundry Pushkar Ghat stampede that claimed 27 lives on Tuesday. Police officials, Minister for Roads and Buildings Tummala Nageswara Rao, district collector K Ilambarthi and joint collector D Divya were seen giving directions to sectorial officers.

It proved impossible for the administration to facilitate darshan for the devotees as the temple premises is close to riverbank on one side and a cluster of shops on the other side. There is no possibility of forming queues for the devotees. Meanwhile, the idols of processional deities had been placed near the Uttara Dwaram (north gate) for the pilgrims to have darshan as it was taking six to seven hours to visit the Lord inside sanctum sanctorum.

“Utmost the temple administration could provide darshan to nearly 70,000 devotees a day,” Tummala Nageswara Rao told The Hans India, calling upon the pilgrims not to hang on for the Lord’s darshan inside the sanctum sanctorum.With no adequate sanitation workers, it was a huge task for the officials to clear the piles of garbage accumulated along the river banks and bathing ghats.

Even though intermittent showers lashed the temple town in the last two days, the high humidity levels became a major worry for the pilgrims especially with no proper drinking water facility made available in the area. According to official sources, an estimated 2.09 lakh pilgrims took holy dip in the Godavari by 7 pm on Wednesday.

The number was expected to exceed Tuesday’s 2.10 lakh as Wednesday was a new moon day which was said to be the auspicious for performing pinda pradanam. Surprisingly, the devotees coming from Rayalaseema, especially from Anantapur and Kadapa districts outnumbered the others coming from the rest of districts, according to the priests engaged in pinda pradanam.

“Officials, who laid emphasis on reinforcing security measures, had not focused on basic amenities,” KVK Chaitanya, an environmental engineer, said, pointing out the inconvenience he faced to reach the temple town from Sarapaka where the pilgrims had to park their vehicles.

Despite the authorities’ warnings, the hotels and vendors kept fleecing the devotees. Among the dignitaries, who visited the temple were Kanchi Kamakoti Sri Jayendra Saraswati, Telangana State government advisor KV Ramanachary and Khammam MP Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy.

On Tuesday, the first day of the Godavari Pushkaralu, in spite of the Rajahmundry tragedy casting a shadow over the spiritual congregation, was a huge success in Bhadrachalam, also known as Dakshin Ayodhya, as an estimated 2.10 lakh pilgrims turned to River Godavari to have a holy dip.

On that day, thousands of devotees congregated on the Godavari banks jostled with each other to have a glimpse of Sri Tridandi Srimannarayana Ramanuja Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji as he walked up to the river after offering special prayers at the Sri Sira Ramachandra Swamy temple.

The seer performed Vishesa Snapanam to the Sri Rama Padukalu, Satari and Sudarshana Chakram, before he took a holy dip in the Godavari at 6.26 am amid the chants of Vedic hymns, thus formally announcing the start of Pushkaralu, the once-in-a-12-year mega religious event on Tuesday. The Minister for Irrigation T Harish Rao and R&B Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao also took holy dip along with the seer.

By:Adepu Mahender