170 temples to get facelift in Nellore

Nellore: Agriculture Minister K Govardhan Reddy said that 60 temples in the district are getting the assistance of Rs 5,000 under the Dhupa Deepa Naivedyam scheme and now, they have added 110 more temples to the list. The Minister formally laid a foundation stone for the Venkateswara Swamy temple at Indiramma Colony in Venkatachalam on Sunday. Speaking on the occasion, he said they were constructing temples in SC/ST and fishermen areas with the support of Srivani Trust of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams. As soon as, they came to power, they started constructing temples in the fishermen, SC and ST colonies for offering prayers, he said.

Govardhan Reddy said the TTD was providing Rs 10 lakh for each temple and 111 places have been selected for the first phase. He said 7 among them were in the Sarvepalli constituency. The foundation was constructing them on priority basis in the district, he added. He indicated there were proposals for increasing the monthly support for the temples from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000. He said they were focusing on both development and welfare and improving basic infrastructure in all areas equally.