The number of devotees who came to the penultimate day of the Godavari Pushkaralu in the district was double the number of its population. The figure is likely to increase considerably in the last day, Saturday, as the stream of pilgrims poured into different destinations Pushkar refused to stop Friday night in itself.
While the population of Adilabad is about 30 lakh, the number of devotees who come to the 36 ghats in 31 locations across the 60 lakh mark by 3 pm on Friday. Basing centers received around one lakh pilgrims during the day.
The district administration has prepared for a rush of devotees early Saturday, will arrive in special trains, buses and private vehicles. The number of pilgrims from different parts of the state, especially the capital, is likely to be high. The same is expected of the devotees of the border towns and villages in Maharashtra and from within the district.
Huge arrivals will, however, traffic flow or the facilities provided by the district administration can not try, because the authorities and the district police have the advantage of preparing plans made during the run up to the mega event.
Police, firefighters and divers experts have been deployed in Pushkar Ghat, where the stampede and five ghats in Rajahmundry had happened.
In Telangana, the authorities were on high in view of the rising water level alert. Additional precautionary measures were taken in cities Bhadrachalam temple, Dharampuri and Kaleshwaram.
The pilgrims were warned against crossing the barricades on the ghats.
The officials said that about 10 crore people have so far taken the dip.
While Rs 5.12 million people took a bath in the river in the five districts of Telangana until Friday, this number crossed 4.50 crore in East Godavari and West Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh on Saturday morning.
It is expected that over a thousand crore people to participate in the event in the two states on the last day.
The festival will end on Saturday night with the rituals including ‘Pushkar jyothi’ grandiose ‘arathi’ in various places of pilgrimage.
Although pushkaralu take place once in 12 years, this time is considered very auspicious. The priests say that such an event comes once in 144 years.
People all over the country took the holy dip in the Godavari, known as the southern Ganges. Naga Sadhus had ‘Shahi snan’ or royal bath in the temple town of Bhadrachalam in Khammam district of Telangana.
While Telangana built 106 bathing ghats in five districts, Andhra made elaborate arrangements for the pilgrims on 280 ghats in the two districts.
The chief ministers of the two states had marked out of the party taking the dip along with their families in their respective states on July 14.
In Rajahmundry, the event began on a tragic note as minutes after Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Naidu took N.Chandrababu immersion in Pushkar ghat, a stampede broke out killing two pilgrims.
Shaken by the tragedy, Naidu decided to camp in the city for the duration of the festival to oversee the process.
