Lokesh seeks ‘divine blessings’ ahead of Yuvagalam
The Hindu
KADAPA
Telugu Desam Party (TDP) general secretary Nara Lokesh sought ‘divine blessings’ from various religious shrines in Kadapa district on Wednesday, ahead of embarking on his State-wide walkathon titled ‘Yuvagalam’.
After praying at NTR Ghat, the samadhi of his grandfather and party founder N.T. Rama Rao in Hyderabad, Mr. Lokesh reached Kadapa airport by evening, where he was accorded a rousing welcome by the party workers.
With the cadre cheering him, Mr. Lokesh’s entourage reached the city, where he prayed at the prominent shrines belonging to three different faiths, viz., the Ameen Peer Dargah, Mariapuram Roman Catholic Cathedral and Devunikadapa Lakshmi Venkateswara Swamy temple.
Mr. Lokesh offered a ‘chadar’ at the famed dargah, where he was greeted with a ceremonial headgear by the priests. The pastors conducted special prayers and blessed him at the Mariapuram church. At Devunikadapa shrine, the priests showered Vedic hymns on the young leader. He later left for Tirumala, where he is scheduled to pray at Sri Venkateswara temple early on Thursday.
While residents are worried over deaths due to diarrhoea in Vijayawada, officials still grapple to find the root cause. Contaminated drinking water supplied by VMC officials is the reason, insist people in the affected areas, but officials insist that efforts are on to identify the disease and that those with symptoms other than diarrhoea too are visiting the health camps.