Smriti Vanam to come up at Nelakondapalli

The three-day Bhakta Ramadasu Jayanti Utsavams begin 

Nelakondapalli (Khammam): The State government wants to bring back the glory of yesteryears which Nelakondapalli, the native place of saint poet Bhakta Ramadasu alias Kancharla Gopanna of 17th century, the Minister for Roads and Buildings Tummala Nageswara Rao said.

Taking part in the inaugural ceremony of the three-day Bhakta Ramadasu Jayanti Utsavams, jointly organised by Department of Culture, Telangana, and Bhakta Ramadasu Vidwat Kalapeetham here on Sunday, the Minister said the government was committed to propagate the greatness of the saint poet by developing a Smriti Vanam in the place where he lived.

The government will give due importance to saint composer, he said, pointing to the Bhakta Ramadasu Lift Irrigation Scheme that named after him. “The elders of the village have promised to provide a piece of land to make Smriti Vanam more spacious adjacent to Dhyana Mandiram,” the Minister said, referring to the government’s plans to develop the place. Stating that Smriti Vanam will be completed within one year, he said it would be like the one at Bammera in Jangaon district constructed in memory of poet Pothana.

This apart, the ancient Boudha Stupam, 4 km from Nelakondapalli, will also be developed in such a way that the region would soon become a tourist hub, the Minister said.

Department of Culture Director Mamidi Harikrishna said: “Bhakta Ramadasu is one among many great composers who brought accolades to carnatic music with his compositions. This apart, he is a great administrator as was a Tahsildar during the rule of Tana Shah of the Qutb Shahi Dynasty in Golconda.” 

This is the second year that the Department of Culture has been conducting Ramadasu Jayanti Utsavams at the instance of the Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao who is keen on propagating the greatness of the people who brought laurels to the region, he said. Jwala Narasimha Rao, the PRO of the CMO, reminisced the days he spent in Nelakondapalli. 

Earlier, Tummala laid foundation stone for the works of Dhyana Mandiram and Rs 4.36 crore overhead storage reservoir (part of Mission Bhagiratha). ­Zilla Parishad chairperson Gadipalli Kavitha, Collector DS Lokesh Kumar, RDO Purnachandra and Market Committee Chairman Sakhamuri Ramesh were among others present.