VIJAYAWADA: Krishna district administration, along with Subramanya Swamy Temple authorities, conducted Sarpa Shanti Homam at the temple premises in Mopidevi on Wednesday. The priests of the temple performed special pooja to put a brake on the increasing snakebite cases in the Krishna district. As on date, the snakebite cases in Krishna district reached 322 and all of those were reported from the Avanigadda, Diviseema regions.
For record, in a bid to reduce the snakebite cases, Krishna district administration has started various awareness programmes and has also deployed special teams in the affected areas. Apart from giving anti-venom dose, the officials have also distributed homoeopathy medicine Naja 200 to the snakebite victims. Now the administration has taken the divine route.
Though by conducting this special pooja and homam the temple authority drew criticism from the rationalists, yet they went ahead and performed the pooja. “On request from the villagers and farmers, this special homam was organised in the temple. This homam is expected to resolve all the ill effects caused by snakebite and related natural calamity. The farmers in this region have put their faith on the Subramanya Swamy and with this homam, they wish to reduce the number of snakebite cases,” said M Sarada Kumari, assistant commissioner of the temple.
The special homam took place on a grand note, as large number of people from the nearby villages came to witness the homam, she said. “2000 people have come to take the blessing and see the homam. Majority of the farmers with their families have come to take part in it.” On Wednesday, the Sarpa Shanti Homam began with a ‘vigneswara pooja’ at 8 am and was followed by ‘punyahavachanam’ and ‘mandapa aradhana’.