VIJAYAWADA: Endowments Minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy on Friday said the State government would introduce improved facilities and services for devotees visiting the Sri Durga Malleswara Swamyvarla Devasthanam (SDMSD) atop Indrakeeladri in Vijayawada ahead of the upcoming Dasara festivities.
The Minister inaugurated the newly constructed Annaprasadam buildings at the foothills of Indrakeeladri, built at a cost of around Rs 52 crore.
Speaking on the occasion, Anam said the new facilities had been designed to accommodate 800 devotees at a time.
He said the mechanised kitchen would use new technology to improve the preparation and distribution of food.
The Endowments Minister further said around three crore devotees were being provided Annaprasadam at temples across Andhra Pradesh every year.
He recalled that Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had directed officials to prepare plans for a second ghat road to Indrakeeladri.
“A report on the proposed second ghat road was being prepared and tenders would be invited soon,” he said.
The Minister further said the Kanchi Peetham had proposed installing a 25-foot-tall statue of Adi Shankaracharya along the ghat road. The government had responded positively to the proposal, he added.
The minister said the number of devotees visiting temples across the State had increased considerably and the government was taking steps to improve facilities at all the major shrines.
Vijayawada MP Kesineni Sivanath (Chinni) said the new Annaprasadam buildings had been constructed to accommodate more devotees for the upcoming Dasara festivities and also during the normal days.
He said the number of devotees visiting Goddess Kanaka Durga at Indrakeeladri was increasing every day and several more development works would be taken up at the temple in the coming days.
With the annual Dasara festivities approaching, preparations had already begun, the MP said. He said the government and temple authorities were working to ensure better arrangements for the large number of devotees expected during Dasara.
Durga temple Executive Officer (EO) VK Seena Naik and officials from various departments attended the inauguration programme.