Krishna Pushkaram began with a poor turnout of pilgrims at Srisailam and Sangameswaram in Kurnool district on Friday.
The host of officials, policemen and media personnel outnumbered the pilgrims. Several buses that were plied from different places to Srisailam carried a handful of passengers in each trip. The APSRTC buses and private vehicles that reached Srisailam were stopped at the checkpost at the entry point, from where pilgrims had to trek on the dusty roads to the bathing ghat at Pathalaganga, four kms away.
The aged persons and children faced hardships as they had to trek for three kms till the Pathalaganga bathing ghat and climb down 700 steps to take a holy dip. Mini-bus shuttle services were not plied as promised. The ropeway was out of bounds for common pilgrims, as it was restricted for VIPs and VVIPs.
No info on schedule
The frantic efforts of media personnel to ascertain the daily programme schedule during the 12-day pushkaram proved futile as no official had any information. Neither the District Collector nor any official conducted any media conference to inform them about the programmes. Laptops were arranged in the media centre at Srisailam on Thursday night but internet facilities played truant. Painters were seen painting images of Lord Siva, Parvathi, Nandeeswara and other holy images on the walls even on Friday.
Host of officials, policemen and media personnel outnumber pilgrims
