With only three days left for Maha Sivaratri festival, the forest department is getting ready for making security arrangements at some of the forested areas, where the temples of Lord Siva are located amidst waterfalls.
Hot destinations
Satyavedu forest range has two Siva temples, Siddeswara temple at Ubbalamadugu and Bhupateswara Swamy temple at Bhupateswara Kona. On Maha Sivaratri day, the places become hot destination for thousands of devotees from Nellore and Chittoor districts and Chennai.
But both these spots have come to be known for tragic incidents in the last few years. Located deep inside the forest, these places are known to be a major attraction for adventure junkies, most of whom come from Tamil Nadu. This time too, a good turnout of visitors is expected as, thanks to good rainfall in 2019, the place is now brimming with cascading waterfalls and ponds.
Talking about the measures being taken by them, Forest Range Officer(FRO) (Satyavedu) J. Prasada Rao told The Hindu that the staff had already been posted at Ubbalamadugu and Bhupateswara Kona to prevent adventure lovers from entering deep into forests.
“Though the waterfalls are closed for the visitors by 4 p.m., the timings are made flexible during the festive season. The members of the temple management committees are sought to strictly monitor the cleanliness in the surroundings and report to the forest and police personnel the cases of people moving deep inside the forests or carrying liquor, cigarettes and match boxes,” he said.
In spite of the regular checks, some youth manage to get into the forests with liquor bottles. Police personnel are deployed at the borders and also near the picnic spots to check the menace, the FRO said.