Finance Minister T. Harish Rao offered pattu vastralu to Goddess Vana Durga Bhavani at Edupayala in Papannapet mandal on Friday on the occasion of Mahasivaratri. He was accompanied by Lok Sabha member K. Prabhakar Reddy, and MLAs M. Padma Devender Reddy and M. Madan Reddy.
Speaking after offering prayers, Mr. Harish Rao said that Godavari water would be brought to Edupayala for the jatara through the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project.
“Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao has been focussing on developing all temples in the State. We have come up with a master plan for the Edupayala temple. We have also entered into an agreement with the Forest department for transferring forest land for tourism development. In lieu of that, the government would offer same size of land to the department,” said Mr. Harish Rao. He added shopping complexes and function halls would also be developed there.
Earlier in the day, Collector K. Dharma Reddy inspected the arrangements.
At Siddipet, Amarnath and Dwadasa jyothirlingams were established and proved to be huge attractions.
In the erstwhile Nizamabad district, Shaivite temples reverberated with chants of ‘Shambho Shankara’ and ‘Harahar Mahadev’ since early Friday morning as devotees formed serpentine queues to have the darshan of the presiding deity. Police made tight security arrangements and regulated the crowd and vehicular traffic outside temples.
Assembly Speaker P. Srinivas Reddy offered prayers at Someswaralayam at Durki in his Banswada constituency while MLA Bigala Ganesh Gupta and Collector C. Narayana Reddy along with his family had darshan of Lord Siva at the ancient Neelakanteswaralayam at Kanteswar. Assistant Collector Venkatesh Dotre and Special Collector Nandalal Pawar offered prayers at Sidharameswaralayam in Biknoor.
Scores of devotees visited temples atop Sidhulagutta in Armoor and Kedasweralayam at Nandipet.
Village fair
Teerthala, the small village in Khammam rural mandal, witnessed a whir of activity on Friday as devotees thronged the historic Sangameswara Swamy temple in the village to worship the temple deity on Mahasivaratri.
The festival saw the beginning of the five-day annual jatara in the village located on the banks of Akeru river. The temple reverberated with chants in praise of Lord Sangameswara as the devotees offered special prayers. A host of special rituals including mahabishekam of the temple deity with milk marked the occasion. Transport Minister P. Ajay Kumar was prominent among those who offered prayers.
Police kept a strict vigil on the banks of Akeru to prevent drowning incidents.
Sivaratri festival was celebrated with devotional aura in all Siva temples in both Khammam and Bhadradri-Kothagudem districts. The ancient Sri Ganapeshwaralayam of the Kakatiya era in Kusumanchi buzzed with hectic religious activity.
Sri Neeladreeshwara Swamy temple in Penubally mandal, Sri Mrutyunjaya Swamy temple in Madhira mandal, Sri Bramaramba Mallikarjuna Swamy temple in Annapureddypalli mandal and various other Siva temples across the old undivided Khammam district witnessed a steady stream of devotees.
Religious fairs kicked off at various temples dedicated to Lord Siva in Karepalli, Penubally and other mandals coinciding with Maha Sivaratri. A kabaddi tournament got off to an enthusiastic start at Nerada village in Chintakani mandal.
Congress Legislature Party leader and Madhira MLA Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka inaugurated the event after performing special puja at the local Siva temple.
Night-long bhajans
In the undivided Adilabad district, a large number of devotees flocked to Sivalayams, where they began their fast and participated in the night-long recital of bhajans at the respective temples. Hundreds of devotees arrived at the scenic Kuntala waterfall in Neredigonda mandal of Adilabad district to offer prayers at the cave temple of Lord Someshwara. Some of them had even come from Maharashtra to spend the night at the dried-up foot of the famous twin waterfalls.
The devout also offered prayers at the Kadili Papahareshwara temple at Kadili in Dilawarpur mandal of Nirmal district. The ancient Burugupalli Rajarajeshwara temple in Mamda mandal also attracted scores of people.
Jataras or village fairs were held at Kuntala and Burugupalli temples. Among the other temples which saw a large congregation were the Vellala Sivalayam at Chennur and Bugga Rajeshwaralayam in Bellampalli, both in Mancherial district.
Devotional fervour
From the Sivalayam on Yadagirigutta to the 12th century Sri Meenakshi Agasteswara Swamy temple at Vadapally on the Telangana-Andhra Pradesh border, and at least dozen other popular ancient temples in between, Nalgonda was soaked in devotional fervour on Friday.
Devotees in thousands, political leaders and bureaucrats along with families thronged the shrines to offer special prayers marking the festival.
The nearest and ancient Siva temple at Panagal in the town – Sri Chaya Someswara Swamy temple, known for its mysterious chaya or shadow on the lingam in the sanctum sanctorum – had devotees visiting throughout the day.
The Pachala Someswara Swamy temple, a few hundred metres away, the Chervugattu Jadala Ramalingeswara Swamy, the Yeleswaram Swamy shrine at Nagarjunasagar, Someswara Swamy temple in Kolanupaka, Pillalamarri Trikuteswara Swamy temple and Mellacheruvu Shambu Lingeshwara temple in Suryapet, were all decked up and suitably prepared for the devotee rush.
Energy Minister G. Jagadish Reddy along with State Legislative Council Chairman Gutha Sukender Reddy were at the Sri Meenakshi Agasteswara Swamy temple. Together, they inaugurated the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam’s kalyana mandapam on the premises, and were later part of the annadanam programme.
“All temples in the State are being protected and developed. Welfare of the priests and funds for conduct of temples has also improved,” Mr. Sukender Reddy said.
Nalgonda MP and TPCC president N. Uttam Kumar Reddy along with local leaders was at the Sivalayam in Mellacheruvu to offer prayers.
