TTD\'s sea-facing temple in Vizag getting set for inauguration

Vishakhapatanam: The much-awaited sea-facing Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple on a hillock at Rushikonda beach here will be opened to the public by August if the pending works are completed as per  present schedule.

The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) had begun the construction in July 2019 and it was  to complete by March 2020. The Covid-induced lockdowns and curfews delayed the works.

A contractor at the site said, "We have been asked to complete the pending works by August 13. Nearly 85 per cent of the work is over."

There has been a buzz among the locals that Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy would visit the city on August 13 for the inauguration. TTD source said, "New chairman Y.V. Subba Reddy is taking charge on July 27 after his return from the US. We have no official word so far on the opening of the temple. The chairman will decide on this after he takes charge."

The temple is located 10km away from the city, adjacent to Gitam University. Built 60-metres away from the mean sea level, it is the cynosure of all eyes at the Rushikonda beach, said an AP tourism official.

A separate 500-metre-long ghat road was also built as part of the Rs28 crore project. The former TTD chairman Subba Reddy and tourism minister Muttamsetti Srinivasa Rao examined the works in December last.

The project is spread over 10 acres, comprising the main temple and sub-temples, the Sri Padmavathi Ammavaru and the Sri Andal Ammavaru. The statues of the temple were carved at the SV Institute of traditional sculpture and architecture in Tirupati.