VIJAYAWADA: The 10-day Dasara festivities at Sri Durga Malleswara Swamy Varla Devasthanam (SDMSD) atop Indrakeeladri concluded on Saturday with a spectacular procession of the idols of Goddess Kanaka Durga and Lord Malleswara Swamy. The festivities, which commenced on October 3, drew more than 10 lakh devotees from across the country.
On Saturday evening, temple priests performed traditional rituals such as Purnahuti, marking the conclusion of Dasara festivities with Goddess Kanaka Durga adorned in the avatar of Sri Rajarajeshwari Devi. Later, NTR district Commissioner of Police SV Rajashekhar Babu and One-Town police offered puja to Goddess Kanaka Durga at One-Town police station premises and took out the Nagarotsavam procession to Durga ghat. Subsequently, the Utsava idols were handed over to the priests who they performed Hamsa Vahana Seva to Lord Malleswara Swamy and Goddess Kanaka Durga.
According to temple officials, more than 10 lakh devotees thronged the temple during the festivities. The temple generated a revenue of Rs 5 crore through the sale of darshan tickets, Laddu Prasadams and other rituals. A huge number of Bhavani devotees thronged the temple on Saturday and Sunday for the relinquishment of their deeksha.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu appreciated the efforts of officials for the smooth conduct of festivities. In a post on X, he said, “The Dasara Mahotsavam at Kanaka Durga temple at Indrakeeladri in Vijayawada was celebrated with grandeur this year, with arrangements in place for a smooth and spiritually enriching experience for all devotees. Our festivals are more than just celebrations - they form an integral part of our rich cultural traditions and heritage. It is our responsibility to preserve the sanctity of these traditions while continuously improve facilities for devotees.”
Portal for VIPs to continue
In a bid to provide hassle-free darshan to devotees, NTR district CP SV Rajashekhar Babu and Collector Dr G Srijana launched a portal for VVIPs and VIPs to book their tickets in advance.
“As allowing VIP vehicles during peak hours would have caused inconvenience to the common public, we introduced VIP slots for the first time and implemented it strictly. This helped us make arrangements according to VVIP movement and protocols. No common public suffered due to VVIP movement as we alerted them only to visit the temple in the slots prescribed for them. This will be continued further,” the CP explained.
He also highlighted how drones helped the police personnel in managing the crowd. “With the help of drones, we took decisions over crowd management dynamically. The entire temple premises were under the surveillance of drones and CCTV cameras. We regulated the crowd based on the ground situation to avoid untoward incidents,” Rajasekhar added.