Hyderabad, July 21 (NSS): On the occasion of Ashada Bonalu festivities, devotees thronged Sri Ujjaini Mahankali temple at Secunderabad on Sunday and offered prayers to the Goddess.
The devotees queued up to visit the Goddess since the morning. As large numbers of devotees are thronging the temple, the surroundings have become crowded. To ensure that devotees do not face any inconvenience, officials made necessary arrangements.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy visited Sri Ujjaini Mahankali temple and offered prayers to the Goddess. He performed special pujas and offered silk clothes to the deity.
Minister for Transport Ponnala Prabhakar, who is also In-charge Minister of Hyderabad district, offered the first bonum to Goddess Ujjaini Mahankali. He along with his family members participated in the ritual and offered prayers to the Goddess.
Speaking on the occasion, the Minister stated that all arrangements have been made for the successful conduct of the Bonalu festival and expressed hope that the festival would be a grand success with the cooperation of the people.
He further stated that the Telangana government has declared the Mahankali Bonalu festival as a State festival and has made arrangements for its grand celebration.
Meanwhile, the elected representatives from political parties, including Congress, BJP and BRS offered their prayers and participated in special puja of Goddess Mahankali.
Union Minister G Kishan Reddy, Panchayat Raj Minister Seethakka, Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, MPs Laxman and Anil Kumar Yadav, MLA Danam Nagender, Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari and other prominent personalities visited Sri Ujjaini temple and had a darshan of Goddess.
The officials made all arrangements to ensure the comfort and safety of the devotees visiting the temple.
Hyderabad city Police Commissioner, K Srinivas Reddy stated that elaborate security arrangements have been made for the Ujjaini Mahankali Bonalu festival in coordination with various departments.
He said the police department has deployed 1,500 personnel for the festival and SHE teams have been formed for the safety of women devotees.
The Commissioner further informed that the festival is proceeding peacefully and a control room has been set up at the Mahankali police station to monitor the situation continuously.
