GUNTUR: Devotees thronged Sri Trikoteswara Swamy temple in Kotappakonda on the occasion of Maha Shivaratri on Friday. The celebrations held with festive fervour.
The special rituals were commenced from 3 am during Brahma Muhurta in the morning.
Over 25 lakh devotees are expected to visit the temple and the officials organised two-day fair at the foot of the hill, arrangements were made accordingly.
Narasaraopet MLA Gopireddy Srinivasareddy along with MLA Anil Kumar Yadav offered pattu vastralu to the deity.
As many as 3,000 police personnel were deployed for security and a special control room was set up to prevent traffic issues. Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) has set up special services and arranged over 500 bus services from Narasaraopet, Chilakaluripet, Vinukonda, Guntur, Addanki, and Ongole.
As many as 17 illuminated prabhalu from nearby villages including Guravaiahpalem, Kakani, Purushottapatnam, Kavuru, Kammavaripalem, Komatinenivaripalem, Ameensahebvaripalem, Yadavapalli, Appapuram, Maddirala Govindapuram, and Uppalapadu villages have arrived to the temple.
The temple authorities have arranged six queues, ensuring smooth darshan for devotees. On this occasion, Palnadu district forest department has arranged a special flower show and made special arrangements at Jal Vihar, which received a huge response from the devotees.
Minister for Water Resources Ambati Rambabu, district collector Sivashankar Lotheti, Guntur DIG Palaraju, Palnadu SP Ravishankar Reddy, local MLAs, MPs, and government officials also visited the temple and offered special prayers.
Several stalls set up by various government departments, and photo gallery depicting the history of Kotappakonda temple received good response.
