Renigunta airport cleared

The Centre’s decision to develop Renigunta airport at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore will boost religious tourism and develop Rayalaseema region.

Thousands of devotees from the United States, Britain and other parts of the world visit Tirupati every year for the darshan of Lord Venkateswara.

At present, they are put to hardship because of the lack of connectivity and have to catch connecting flights from Chennai, Mumbai or Hyderabad to reach Tirupati. The frequency of flights will increase once the airport is modernised and the runway is extended to 11,000 feet from 7,500 feet. The airport will also be expanded to accommodate at least 700 passengers at once. Night landing facility is already present.

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Oracle: No rains due to sin, greed

The oracle at the annual Rangam refused to bless people with bountiful rains this year at the historic Mahankali temple in Secunderabad.

Interestingly, the oracle put the temple officials in a fix by asking for the sacrifice of a four-legged animal. Sacrifice of animals is banned in temples.

Swarna Latha, the oracle of Ujjaini Mahankali temple, told a huge gathering of devotees that the goddess was unhappy over the “sins” committed by the people and “decline in devotion.” She said a sacrifice of an animal would make the goddess happy.

“We are surprised at the demand. I am sure she will bless us even without a sacrifice,” said Mr K. Mahesh Kumar, member of the festival committee.

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