Dasara festivities commence with grandeur at Durga temple in Vijayawada

Vijayawada: The 11-day Dasara festivities began with grandeur at Sri Durga Malleswara Swamy Varla Devasthanam atop Indrakeeladri on Monday. On Day 1, Goddess Kanaka Durga was adorned as Bala Tripura Sundari Devi and blessed devotees from the sanctum sanctorum.Chants of "Jai Durga" echoed as thousands queued from Vinayaka temple to seek blessings. Sarva darshan began at 8 am, with entry from 7:30 am. Nearly 50,000 devotees visited the temple, and 15,000 partook in free Anna Prasadam by 6 pm. Revenue from darshan, laddu, and seva tickets touched ₹23 lakh.Nearly 50,000 devotees visited the temple, with over 15,000 devotees eating the free Anna Prasadam at 6 pm on Monday, according to the temple authorities. The authorities expect the total devotees' turnout to touch the 70,000 mark by the end of the day. The temple generated approximately Rs 23 lakh in revenue through darshan and laddu ticket sales, along with seva ticket sales by 6 pm on Monday.Earlier in the day, Endowment Minister Anam Ramnarayana Reddy, along with Vijayawada West MLA Sujana Chowdary, Endowment ex-officio Secretary Dr Hari Jawahar Lal, Endowment Commissioner K Ramachandra Mohan, and Durga Temple EO VK Seena Naik, inaugurated the newly constructed Yagashala and Puja Mantapam atop Indrakeeladri. Henceforth, Chandi Homam and other puja rituals would be held at the newly opened Yagashala and Puja Mantapam.Meanwhile, the elected representatives, including VIPs and VVIPs, made a beeline to catch a glimpse of the Goddess Durga Devi adorned as Bala Tripura Sundara Devi. Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha, along with former Vice President of India Venkaiah Naidu and MLAs and MLCs, visited the temple.District Collector Dr G Lakshmisha, along with VMC Commissioner HM Dhyanachandra, inspected the arrangements provided to the devotees in the darshan queue lines. They entered the darshan queue lines at Vinayaka temple and walked on foot to Indrakeeladri, enquiring devotees standing in the queue lines about the amenities such as drinking water and milk availability for the infants in the queue lines.On the second day of the Dasara festivities, the presiding deity Goddess Kanaka Durga Devi will be adorned as Gayathri Devi and bless devotees. The sarva darshan will commence at 4 am on Tuesday.