Covid-19 deprives contractors at Bhadradri of their income

Khammam: The contractors, who got contracts of clothes offered to the God, taking of photos, cell phones collection centres and maintaining of rooms in Ramalayam in Bhadrachalam threw up their hands in despair as they are unable to do business due to corona crisis. They appealed to the temple officials to cancel the contracts and return the deposit amounts.

According to information, the temple officials had called for tenders for mobile phones collection centres, clothes, for taking photos and for maintaining rooms. Some people got the contracts of cell phone collection, clothes collection and photos contract for Rs 52 lakh per annum. But due to the lockdown imposed after the coronavirus spread, the number of devotees visiting the temple has been reduced drastically and the contractors are incurring huge losses.

After waiting patiently for three months for improvement of their incomes, the contractors wrote a letter to the temple officials seeking cancellation of their tenders and to return deposit amount.

Meanwhile, the people, who took temple shops on rent, also appealed the temple officials to extend give them three months' time or to waive off three months' rent. Ramalayam has 50 shops in various locations and getting Rs 25 lakh income per annum.

A cement company owner, who is running 'Sita Nilayam', also appealed to the officials to take back the choultry, stating that they cannot run it as there is not even minimum occupancy and it became hard for them to maintain it.

The cement company owner had constructed Sri Sita Nilayam with 32 rooms near the bathing ghat in 2007. He didn't hand over the Sita Nilayam to the temple authorities, instead he himself has been running the choultry and paying Rs 1.45 lakh per year to the temple authorities. But for the last few months, room occupancy has drastically fell due to Covid-19 and he was unable to maintain the rooms.