Wish-fulfilling elephant-headed God of Sri Vijaya Ganapathi Devalayam

Located a few kilometres away from Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Devasthanam at Simhachalam, Lord Ganesh at 'Sri Vijaya Ganapathi Devalayam' is known for granting boons.

Built in 2000 at Sri Sowbhagya Vijayaramapuram, the temple was established with a generous contribution of (late) Vemaraju Vijaya Saradhi and the present vice president of the society G Ganganna.

Although the construction of the temple began in 1998, it took two years for the shrine to inch towards completion. "My husband Vemaraju Vijaya Saradhi was instrumental in establishing the temple when he was working with the LIC in Visakhapatnam. He had big dreams to develop the temple further and make it popular in Visakhapatnam. Unfortunately, my husband passed away in 2014 and the rest of the family shifted to Hyderabad," explains Vemaraju Rama Bhavani, wife of Vemaraju Vijaya Saradhi, who is now settled in Hyderabad.

Annually, two occasions attract a large number of devotees to the shrine. One, on March 25 as it marks the temple anniversary and the other is during 'Vinayaka Chavithi'. The celebration for the temple would extend from nine to 21 days. "As the temple deity is known for fulfilling wishes of the devotees, a majority of them keep revisiting the temple. Special puja, abhishekam and alankaram along with other rituals form a part of the two main events of the year," says Viswanatha Siva Prasad Sarma, priest at the temple.

Four decades ago, a layout was formed at Sri Sowbhagya Vijayaramapuram (SSV) and about 340 persons bought the plots and founded the SSV Development Association Society. But a majority of those who invested in the plots moved out of the city to settle elsewhere, including in foreign countries. As a result, the society could not see any development. However, a couple of society members proactively came forward to construct the temple at the colony even before the plots were developed. "Apart from Hindus, the temple construction was also contributed by Muslims and Christians, who were the plot owners. Earlier, they used to visit the temple whenever they came to Vizag. If the society gets developed, eventually the temple will also gain more popularity," opines G Ganganna, vice president of the society.

Being a little away from the main road is one of the setbacks that impact the temple's visibility. However, with renovation work in progress, people in the area mention that the shrine will get visibility if signboards are installed at different points along the main road.

In addition, if awareness about 'Sri Vijaya Ganapathi Devalayam' is created at Simhachalam and Bhairavavaka temples through posters and other platforms, locals feel that there is a larger scope for many frequenting the Ganesh temple at Sri Sowbhagya Vijayaramapuram as well.