Over 18 Lakh Devotees Visit Vijayawada Durga Temple During Dasara Festivities

More than eighteen lakh devotees have visited the Kanaka Durga temple on Indrakeeladri hill in Vijayawada so far. The massive rush includes thousands of Bhavani Deeksha devotees wearing red robes who continue to throng the Sri Durga Malleswara Swamyvarla Devasthanam even after the Dasara Sarannavaratri celebrations ended.

Festivity Figures And Food

Temple Executive Officer V.K. Seena Naik reported that nearly fourteen point eighty-four lakh people visited the shrine between October eleven and midnight on October twenty. Later inflows on October twenty-one and twenty-two pushed the total footfall to eighteen point twenty-nine lakh by Thursday afternoon. The administration distributed thirty-nine point eighty-four lakh laddus since the celebrations began, keeping another three point thirty lakh laddus in stock. Free meals or annaprasadam reached eight lakh thirty-seven thousand three hundred and eighty-five people, with food served at the main complex until midnight and via food packets in holding areas during the early morning hours.

Facilities And Medical Aid

Officials arranged food packets at three extra spots near the Vinayaka temple entry, the tonsuring facility underpass, and the hill-top protocol office. The temple also handed out four point thirty-four lakh buttermilk servings and six point forty-five lakh biscuit packets to help people cope with heat and long lines, alongside safe drinking water. Medical teams at five-bed hospital setups and hill camps treated about one point zero six lakh devotees for issues like fever, colds, body aches, and leg pain.

Context

Festivals at major South Indian temples regularly draw massive crowds that require extensive crowd management and temporary food supply systems. Pilgrimages like Bhavani Deeksha involve strict vows and specific dress codes, leading large groups of worshippers to visit holy sites together during designated periods.