KAKINADA : The State government has initiated construction of new chariot for Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple at Antarvedi in East Godavari district, after the 62-year-old chariot caught fire on September 6.Endowments Department Additional Commissioner K Ramachandra Mohan, who has been appointed Special Officer of the Chariot Committee said, “The teak wood logs need to be 21 feet long and with a circumference of 6 feet and should be more than 100 years old. Such teak wood logs were identified at a timber depot in Ravulapalem of East Godavari district. The work of cutting the logs has started. About 1,330 cubic feet of wood will be used in the construction of the chariot.”
Ramachandra further said that the new chariot will be built in the exact model as the old chariot and will be 41-feet high with a width of six feet wide, complete with six wheels and seven stairs.Temple Executive Officer Yerramsetti Bhadraji said the State government is determined to ready the new chariot by Sankranti. The government is spending nearly `95 lakh on the new chariot, he added.It is learnt that police would be deployed at the temple to guard the wood, apart from monitoring of the work by the new chariot committee on a regular basis.
It may be mentioned that the State government issued an order on September 18 to hand over the investigation into suspected arson at the temple to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The earlier chariot was insured for `84 lakh against damage due to fire or earthquake. East Godavari District Collector D Muralidhar Reddy said the insurance company is appraising the damage done to the chariot to arrive at the compensation amount.