Kakinada: Telugu Desam has offered its workers a free darshan of Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala if they attend Mahanadu meetings to be held from May 27 to 29.
Brutal weather with temperatures soaring to 43 and 44 degrees Celsius has impacted mobilisation of workers for the Mahanadu. Party workers are reluctant to go to Tirupati to participate in the meetings.
People are afraid and reluctant to go outdoors due to strong heat wave. Leaders are also not forcing workers to come along with them to Tirupati in view of scorching heat.
“If any unfortunate incident happens due to heat wave, we would not bear it,”' said a TD leader. Many leaders started moving out to Tirupati in their own cars along with their followers.
At the TD District Mahanadu at Kakinada, the minister-in-charge and Irrigation Minister Devineni Umamaheswara Rao told cadres that the party would arrange free darshan of Tirumala but they will have to show their identity cards. He said party workers will be taken to Tirumala in the morning and would be taken back to Tirupati in time for Mahanadu meetings.
Zilla Parishad Chairman Namana Rambabu said nearly 6,000 party cadres can attend Mahanadu meetings. But, under present circumstances it would be difficult to get even 1,000 workers to the meeting, said a TD leader.
According to some leaders, even one bus has not been filled and some buses returned empty without any worker. “It is very hot during the day time and there are rains and gales in evening. How can we go to Tirupati in school buses or other private buses which are most inconvenient for a journey like this,” said Malladi Veerababu of Jagannaickpur, a TD worker.
However, some of the cadres have decided to go to Mahanadu for the Lord Venkateswara Darshan.
