KURNOOL: The two-day Gandikota Utsavalu will start from today. Paragliders and adventure sports enthusiasts have descen-ded on this medieval fort site in droves.
The district administration has invested a lot of money in promoting the festival including a unique offering of local culture with pop music at all the three divisional headquarters of Kadapa, Jammalamadugu and Rajampet. The district officials have also organised the chariot rides so as to travel in royal splendour to Gandikota fete. But the ground reality is that even if a fraction of the amount was spent on creating amenities, it would have been a worthy effort, visitors feel.
The ruins of Gandikota Fort at Jammalamadugu in Kadapa district attra-cts tourists and adventure sports enthusiasts from all over.
Every weekend, hordes of tourists visit the fort to spend time in the serene atmosphere. But neither the Archaeology department nor the state government has cared to provide the historic narrative of the ruins to help tourists understand the importance. Mr Harsha, a software engineer said that he marvelled at the sheer beauty of the rock formations and the solid structures like Gopuram, but could not make out anything about the place except looking at the remnants as a rich heritage.. He said a few sign boards detailing the history and its uniqueness would add to the tourist value of the place.
Mr Sohail Khan, another visitor, said that rest rooms were locked. The irresistible attraction of Gandkota is the gorge or deep cut swerve that carries the Penna water to Mylavaram reservoir. A protected wall and railing is the immediate need to avoid slips and falls into the gorge.
An official said that an adventure sports building is being inaugurated today with an outlay of '3 crore and a ropeway connecting both sides of the gorge was being planned at a cost of '7 crore. “We are providing all facilities”, the official said.
