The four-day biennial jatara of the Sri Lingamanthula Swamy and Goddess Choudamma atop the Durajpalli hillock, popular as Peddagattu jatara or Golla Gattu jatara, began on a grand note with devotees rushing from across the State and neighbouring States on Monday.
The carrying of the ‘Devarapette’ or the divine box, which preserves the Yadava clan-deities — Lingamanthula Swamy, Choudamma, Pothuraju, Ganga and others — started late on Sunday night. Following special prayers, the darshan and the jatara was opened for visitors and devotees on Monday.
Apart from the Telugu States, devotees travelled here from parts of Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Odisha. Although an official estimate on the number of visitors is yet to be announced, flow of tens of thousands of devotees was prominent all through the day.
About 50 acres land was designated for parking purposes, and as seen through official drone visuals, numerous visitors were camped in makeshift tents in about two-kilometre radius of the hillock. Vehicular movement on the NH-65 (Hyderabad-Vijayawada) abutting the Peddagattu was also regulated and diverted for smooth flow.
Energy Minister G. Jagadish Reddy and Minister for Animal Husbandry Talasani Srinivas Yadav and local legislators joined the fete and offered special prayers.
According to Mr. Reddy, the significance of Peddagattu jatara gained more significance after the separate State of Telangana was formed, and the credit was due to Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao for sanctioning sufficient funds for the development of the temple and organization of the festival, he said.
“The footfall is in several lakhs, which is more than our estimate. Round-the-clock arrangements for sanitation in the wake of COVID-19 are being followed as a priority. The jatara is a feast for the eye,” he described.
The Yadava community will be indebted to Mr. Reddy for ensuring grand arrangements, Minister Talasani said and prayed for the prosperity of Telangana.
The opening day saw countless devotees, celebration of music and dance, traditional sacrifice of sheep, women offering bonam in decorated baskets in the ‘gampala pradakshina’, and several village artistes displaying folk talents. Hundreds of souvenir shops, exhibition stalls, street plays and joy rides added energy to the atmosphere.
On Tuesday, the Yadava priests will perform Chandrapatnam, the celestial wedding of the presiding deity, followed by Vratam and celebrations to conclude the jatara on Thursday.