Heavy rush continued on Saturday atop Indrakeeladri, the abode of Goddess Kanaka Durga here. About 70,000 devotees visited the temple by evening and the crowd is expected to touch 90,000 by night.
The queue lines were filled with devotees from dawn to dusk. Though there was a swift movement of queue lines, it was noticed that the number of devotees visiting the temple with references also increased. They were seen entering into arguments with the staff on duty at the entry gates.
As the temple staff were unable to turn down the references, NTR District Collector S. Dilli Rao had to intervene and issue guidelines. It was observed that the darshan timing of common devotees was going up due to darshan of devotees teeming in with references. The staff were instructed not to allow any VIP references.
Meanwhile, Goddess Kanaka Durga is decked up as Sri Maha Lakshmi as part of the Dasara festivities. The temple priests adorned the presiding deity with many ornaments. She is one of the ‘thrisakthi’ and is known for her dhairya. She played a vital role in Mahishasura mardhanam. She is greatly praised and her significance is given in detail in ‘Sri Suktam’ and ‘Lakshmi tantra.’
