Visakhapatnam: Simhachalam gears up for 'Nijaroopa' darshan

Visakhapatnam : Simhachalam Devasthanam is all set for the grand 'Chandanotsavam' festival which is expected to witness over one lakh devotees to view 'nijaroopa darshan' of the presiding deity of the shrine this year.

The temple authorities in tandem with the officials from district, corporation, police, revenue and APEPDCL have made elaborate arrangements at the temple to draw a lakh of devotees and facilitate a hassle-free darshan to them.

According to the temple tradition, the trust board chairman will view the first 'nijaroopa darshan' along with his family members. Silken robes will be offered to Lord Narasimha Swamy by the trust board chairman and endowments minister in the wee hours of Sunday.

Following which, VVIP darshans will be facilitated for an hour that is scheduled to commence at 3.30 am. Post which, free darshan will be allowed to the devotees from 4 am. Also, darshan timings are printed on the tickets. According to allotted slots, devotees are allowed in the queue lines.

Two slots are allotted for VVIPs and protocol darshans between 5 am to 7 am, and again from 8 am to 10 am.

Meanwhile, parking arrangements are made for two wheelers and four wheelers at both uphill and downhill and 16 spaces have been allotted for the motorists to park their vehicles.

Those who are visiting Simhachalam boarding four-wheelers or two-wheelers should park their vehicles at Adavivaram junction and Gosala junction. From those points, free buses are made available to the temple and back to the designated parking spaces.

For those who bought a Rs.1,500 ticket, air-conditioned buses have also been arranged. A slot has been dedicated for the differently-abled persons on Sunday evening.

This time, around 6,000 VVIPs and VIPs are expected to avail 'antaralaya darshan'. However, no distribution of 'prasad' is being facilitated uphill as they will be distributed at Old Gosala and Adavivaram junction.

With traffic restrictions and diversions being imposed, the police appeal to the motorists to follow traffic discipline and help the authorities ensure smooth conduct of the festival. Private vehicles cannot ply along the ghat road due to the restrictions placed.

Keeping the theft incidents in view, the city crime police have placed warning and signboards to alert the devotees at the devasthanam premises. More than 2,000 police personnel would be on duty for streamlining the traffic at various points and junctions.