KCR Offers Prayers At Ujjaini Mahankali Temple

The annual Bonalu festivities commenced at the historic Ujjaini Mahankali temple in Secunderabad on a colourful note amidst tight security today.

The lanes and by-lanes in Secunderabad and its surroundings wore a festive atmosphere, and the temples of goddesses Mahankali, Peddamma, Nalla Pochamma, Yellamma, Muthyalamma and Maisamma decorated with flowers and illuminated with colorful LED lights added to the aesthetics.

Women clad in silk saris stood in queues since the early hours to offer "bonam" (short for bhojanam) made of cooked rice and laced with curd and jaggery, and carried in an earthen pot decorated with turmeric, vermilion and neem leaves, to the goddess Mahankali.

In general, thousands of devotees stood in long queues for more than an hour all through the day to have a darsan (glimpse) of the goddess.

The most high-profile visit to the Ujjaini Mahankali temple was by Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, who offered prayers at the famous temple and presented silk saris and bonam to the presiding deity, in the afternoon.

The temple priests along with Animal Husbandry Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav and others welcomed the Chief Minister.

Endowments Minister A Indrakaran Reddy, Labour & Employment Minister Ch Malla Reddy, Prohibition & Excise and Sports & Youth Services Minister of V Srinivas Goud and others were also present.

Earlier, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy also offered prayers at the temple.

The city police made elaborate security arrangements for the smooth conduct of the two-day festival. Barricades were placed at the main arch of the temple to restrict entry and maintain proper queues. Surveillance cameras were installed at the temple and in the adjoining areas to identify anyone moving suspiciously. The devotees were allowed only after being checked thoroughly with metal detectors. A bomb disposal squad was also pressed into service to check suspicious objects, if any, near the temple.