Endowments Minister said that he considers himself very fortunate to be presenting silk garments to the Lord on behalf of the government

Maha Shivaratri celebrations are being celebrated in a grand manner at Sri Kalahasti on Wednesday. A large number of devotees gathered at the temple since early hours. The temple authorities have been providing darshan to the devotees since 1 am. The authorities have cancelled all kinds of arjita services at the temple on the occasion of Maha Shivratri. It was restricted only to the short(laghu) darshan. The “Maha Lingodbhavam” will be held at 1 pm on Wednesday night.

Along with the normal darshan for all, Special darshans of Rs 200 and Rs 500 have been arranged by the authorities. The annual Brahmotsavams are being held in the temple for 13 days on the occasion of Mahashivratri.  Speaking on the occasion, Srikalahasti MLA Bojjala Sudheer Reddy said that the government has initiated  a radical change in the Srikalahasti temple without any scope for criticism.

“In the eyes of God, all are equal and new changes have been made keeping in mind the common devotees. Unlike in the past, all the devotees are being given the same kind of darshan and by avoiding any kind of politics,” he said. On behalf of the Andhra Pradesh government, endowments Minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy along with MLA Bojjala Sudheer Reddy presented silk clothes  to Sri Kalahastheeswara Swamy.

The endowments Minister was accorded a warm welcome by the department Commissioner Ramachandra Mohan, temple Executive Officer(EO) Bapireddy and temple staff. Special pujas were performed on this occasion. Speaking on the occasion, the Endowments Minister said that he considers himself very fortunate to be presenting silk garments to the Lord on behalf of the government.

He said the government has taken all precautions to ensure that devotees coming from all over the state do not face any inconvenience. He made it clear that the government will give priority to protecting the sentiments of the devotees.