Piety, fervour mark Maha Shivaratri across State

Hyderabad: The Maha Shivaratri festival was celebrated with religious zeal and fervour in the twin cities of Friday. Shiva temples across the city echoed with chants of ‘Om Namshivaya’ ‘Har Har Mahadev’.

Lakhs of devotees thronged the temples and performed special pujas, including ‘Rudrabhishekam’, from dawn. The temple managements made special arrangements for the festive occasion.

The police said the department had deployed adequate security personnel, including women officers, to ensure smooth conduct of festivities at prominent temples across the city.

According to several puja committees, the day-long celebrations featured bhajans lasting till midnight as part of the ‘jagaran’ during the festival.

It has become an annual ritual in our family to visit Shiva temple at Keesaragutta to attend the ‘Brahmotsavam’ on Shivaratri every year,” said Krishna of Kukatpally. Shiva temples witnessed huge footfall, especially in Keesaragutta, a popular hill shrine in Medchal-Malkajgiri district. Long queues were witnessed from the early hours of the day at the abode of Ramalingeswara Swamy. According to temple authorities, approximately 2.5 lakh devotees visited the shrine and offered ‘abhishekam’ to lingams on the hillock.

Even at the newly constructed Dakshin Ke Badrinath Temple, a large number of devotees thronged to take the Lord’s blessings.