Indrakeeladri still packed after Dasara: 20 lakh devotees have had darshan, rush set to last till 25 October

The crowd at Indrakeeladri has not thinned with the close of Dasara. By 4 pm on 22 October, 18.29 lakh devotees had had darshan of Goddess Kanaka Durga at the hill temple in Vijayawada, Executive Officer VK Seena Naik said. He later said the total had reached 20 lakh by that night, and that it would keep rising.

The Sharannavaratri festival ran from 11 to 20 October and drew 14.84 lakh devotees up to midnight on 20 October. The difference, about 3.45 lakh by 4 pm on 22 October, came after the festival days ended, as Bhavani devotees in red began arriving in large numbers from across the state. On 21 October the Goddess was dressed as Sri Rajarajeshwari Devi, and the One Town area around the hill filled from early morning.

What the temple has handed out

The temple’s figures, as of 4 pm on 22 October, show the scale of the operation:

• Laddus: 39.84 lakh issued, with 3.30 lakh more kept ready.
• Annadanam: 8,37,385 devotees fed, with the annaprasadam complex serving until midnight and food packets given out in the holding areas overnight.
• Refreshments: 4.34 lakh buttermilk packets and 6.45 lakh biscuit packets, along with drinking water along the queue lines.
• Health care: free outpatient treatment and emergency medicines for about 1.06 lakh devotees at the medical points on the hill, mostly for leg pain, colds, body aches and fever.

Extra food counters have been opened near the Vinayaka temple entrance, the underpass near the tonsuring hall and the protocol office on the hill. Public address systems relay queue instructions and the timings of the maha naivedyam and harathis.

Evening Panchaharathi

On the evening of 22 October, 1,32,411 devotees had darshan during the Panchaharathi ritual, with three queue lines kept open while it was performed. The Vinayaka temple queue was due to close at 11 pm, depending on the rush, and devotees already in line were to be given darshan.

Traffic and crowd control

Police Commissioner SV Rajasekhar Babu has directed the traffic wing, supervised by Traffic DCP Sheikh Shareena Begum, to watch the main roads, junctions and bus-heavy stretches with drone cameras, subject to the necessary permissions. Traffic will be diverted where needed. Buses carrying devotees must use designated parking areas and will not be allowed to halt on main roads; if those fill up, vehicles will be sent to alternative sites.

What comes next

The Executive Officer said temple staff, police and other departments are working together to keep darshan and food supply running. Devotees who could not complete their Bhavani Deeksha relinquishment on 23 October are expected to arrive on 24 and 25 October, and the rush is expected to continue until 25 October.