Bhadrachalam: Dammakka Seva Yatra held in simple way

Bhadrachalam: The annual Dammakka Seva Yatra programme was conducted by the authorities of Lord Rama temple here on Sunday in a simple way without devotees due to corona outbreak.

Dammakka Seva Yyatra was officially launched in 2014, in the honour of Pokala Dammakka, a tribal woman of bygone era known for her committed devotion to Lord Rama. Since then, the yatra is being continued every year on the auspicious day of Ashada Pournami in Ashada masam. Under normal conditions, tribals will participate in the procession and dance as per their tradition.

Earlier priests performed special puja and abhishekam to the main deities and special puja to the portrait of Dammakka. They took out a procession to the statue of Dammakka near the temple. Later, a special kalyanam was performed in Govindarama Swamy temple in Tatagudi in the temple town. During the entire programme, a few temple officers and priests were present with masks.

A tribal devotee M Nehru said that Dammakka Seva Yatra is a good opportunity for the tribal people to participate in the puja programmes of Lord Rama temple every year. "But this time due to coronavirus outbreak, we couldn't participate in the programme," he lamented.