Non-availability of water to drink and to take a holy dip top the list of problems
Problems galore at the ancient and historic Sri Anjaneya Swamy Devasthanam in Kondagattu of Mallial mandal in Karimnagar district are causing serious inconvenience to pilgrims visiting the shrine.
One of the famous pilgrim shrines in the Telangana region and declared a tourist hub by the government, the shrine is being neglected due to the lethargy on the part of the authorities concerned. A never ending problem at the temple shrine is the non-availability of water for drinking water purposes and to take a holy bath in the tank.
Devotees are forced to bathe in the murky waters of the holy tank, which is only knee-deep throughout the year, before offering prayers to Lord Hanuman at the shrine. Taking this into consideration, the authorities had decided to construct a modern holy tank at a cost of Rs.1.21 crore in the year 2007.
The then Chief Minister Y.S. Rajashekhara Reddy had visited the temple shrine and offered prayers and laid the foundation stone for the construction of the new tank for the benefit of pilgrims in the year 2007. Similarly, he had also laid the foundation stone for the construction of JNTU in the mandal
Surprisingly, the JNTU campus was completed with all facilities, but the construction of the holy tank has been going on at snail’s pace for several years. It is also alleged that the new holy tank construction was against the ‘Vasthu’ norms and was being constructed only as a swimming pool with pillars.
On the other hand, the kalyanakatta, which was being constructed at a cost of Rs.40 lakh at the shrine, was opened to the pilgrims and they were forced to stand outside under the tree shade and other unclean places to tonsure their hair.
In order to make the temple shrine a tourist hub, authorities had planned several developmental works such as rope-way, double-road and steps to climb the shrine and also lifting of water from the nearby Kompalli village tank etc., but it has all remained only on paper and nothing has materialised.
Taking advantage of non-availability of water, traders fleece pilgrims coming from far-flung places. It is about time that authorities intensify developmental works at the earliest and ensure better facilities for the ensuing Hanuman Jayanthi celebrations, for which several lakhs of devotees are likely throng the temple shrine.
