GUNTUR: Officials are planning to set up a temple eco-park near Sattemma Thalli Temple in Madipadu in Atchempet mandal, in order to develop the tribal region. Devotees from across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana visit the temple every day.In the recent years, the devotee rush has surged, especially on Sundays and Tuesdays, when close to 5,000 people visit the temple as special prayers are offered to the Goddess.
As infrastructure of the temple is no longer able to accommodate the increasing rush, officials have decided to set up a temple eco-park and develop it as a tourist spot as the temple is surrounded by forest.
District Collector Vivek Yadav informed that in the first phase, the temple eco-park will be set up with `1.30 crore to provide basic amenities to the devotees arriving at the temple. He added that as part of it, the road from Atchempet to the temple will be developed.
“An RO water plant will be set up to provide safe drinking water to the people in the village and devotees as well. Overhead tanks, toilets, guest rooms, parking lots and green landscapes will be set up,” the Collector said. The officials have reportedly already drafted the proposals and forwarded them to the government. As soon as the proposals get a nod from the higher authorities, the works will begin and necessary action will be taken to complete them by March 2022.
The Collector stated that the development of the temple eco-park will provide employment to Vana Rakshana Samithi members who have been working for the conservation of forest regions in the area. He added that through the project, people in the surrounding tribal villages could also benefit.
The Forest Department will set up a checkpost and watchtowers for the conservation of the forest area around the temple.Vivek Yadav along with Pedakurapadu MLA Namburu Shankar Rao, DFO Ramachandra Rao visited the area and enquired about the possibilities of various development works that could be taken up soon in the region.