VIJAYAWADA: Even as Kanaka Durga Temple welcomes lakhs of devotees from across the country every year, several key signboards within the temple premises continue to be displayed only in Telugu, leaving many non-Telugu-speaking pilgrims struggling to navigate one of AP’s most visited shrines.
Perched atop Indrakeeladri hill overlooking the Krishna River, Sri Durga Malleswara Swamy Varla Devasthanam, popularly known as Kanaka Durga Temple, is among the country’s most revered Shakti Peethas.
The temple attracts devotees from across India throughout the year, with footfall surging during the annual Dasara festivities.
However, despite its national prominence, multilingual signage remains inconsistent across the premises.
While several signboards are in both Telugu and English, many, including entrance boards indicating different darshan categories and directional signs to the footwear deposit counter, toilets, annaprasadam hall and ticket counter, are in Telugu.
“I don’t know Telugu nor how to read it. The first time I visited, it was difficult to even figure out where to enter the temple. I had to ask several people before I reached the correct queue,” said a devotee from Tamil Nadu.
Another devotee, Meera from Delhi, echoed similar concerns. “The temple is beautiful and well-managed, but adding signboards in English and Hindi at every important point would make the visit much easier for pilgrims coming from other states. At the entrance itself, I wasn’t sure which board referred to the free darshan queue and which were for paid darshan,” she said.
Speaking to TNIE, Temple Executive Officer Seena Naik said, “We are planning to replace the existing signboards with new ones in Telugu, English and Hindi. The boards are being prepared, and we expect them to be installed before the Dasara festival.”