Golconda Bonalu From Jul 7 To 17, Rest From Jul 24

The Telangana government was making elaborate arrangements for the traditional Bonalu festival in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, Cinematography Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav today said.

Accompanied by GHMC Mayor Bonthu Rammohan and officials, the minister paid a visit to a temple near the Golconda fort on Sunday and reviewed the arrangements for the event.

Speaking on the occasion, Yadav said that the government was looking forward to witnessing bonhomie and brotherhood between Hindus and Muslims as Bonalu and Eid would both be celebrated in the same time frame.

The famous Golconda Bonalu would be held from July 7 to 17, the Ujjaini Mahankali Bonalu on July 24 and 25, and the Lal Darwaza Bonalu on July 31 and August 1, Yadav said.

For all these events, the officials should coordinate to ensure that there would be no problems with power supply, illumination of the temples, water, sanitation, traffic regulation, ambulance services, security, barricading and parking, he exhorted. As a large number of people flocked the Bonalu at Golconda, repairing roads, covering manholes, plugging water leakages and others needed focus, he said. The GHMC, R&B, archeology, and information & cultural departments should play their roles well to enhance the grandeur of the historic venue and the State festival, he added.

Mayor Rammohan said that Bonalu was famous in even Delhi and abroad. Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had released Rs 5 crores for it, he said. Besides sprucing up the temples with attractive illumination and lighting, officials should trim trees, close pits and potholes on roads, take up patch works, evaluate sanitation standards, and work hard on traffic regulation and parking, he, too, added.