Larger bathing ghats for pushkarams on the anvil

District Collector Babu A. said the ghats, being spruced up at Ibrahimpatnam and Ferry for Krishna Pushkarams, would be 15 times larger than the one that served devotees last time. The expertise of Guizhou International Investment Corporation (GIIC) was sought for creating the infrastructure there and at other places along river Krishna.

Permanent feature

These bathing ghats would be permanent features of the city and would have the potential to attract tourists, he said.

Speaking after inspecting the Durga Ghat here, along with a GIIC delegation led by its senior executives Ashley and Somg and municipal commissioner G. Veerapandian on Wednesday, Mr. Babu said the GIIC should help in redesigning the Durga Ghat by taking the maximum flood discharge and other factors into account, and instructed the civic officials to remove the obstructions standing in the way of Durga Ghat.

Road to be widened

The K.L. Rao Park has to be renovated for the Krishna Pushkarams. Similarly, the rooms in which Sir Arthur Cotton had stayed have to be decked up for the auspicious occasion. The road at the municipal corporation’s intake well could be widened by shifting the pump-house there to another place, Mr. Babu suggested.

The Collector said that stringent action would be taken against those not vacating the spaces illegally occupied by them at Fishermen Ghat. The area needed to be cleared to pave the way for construction of Kanaka Durga flyover. Besides, encroachments between Ibrahimpatnam and Ferry have to be removed, Mr. Babu said, and instructed the officials to close the sand quarry near Bhavani Ghat due to violation of rules.

Exhibition site

Speaking to media later, Mr. Babu said an exhibition site would be set up in 35 acres in the vicinity of Krishnaveni and Padmavati Ghats. Construction of Kanaka Durga flyover has been expedited and steps being taken for building an iconic bridge near Ferry connecting Vijayawada city with the capital city of Amaravati.

Expertise of Guizhou International Investment Corporation sought