Andhra stampede: How a 94-year-old landlord built the 'private' temple in Srikakulam after being denied darshan at Tirumala

Hyderabad: The Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in Kasibugga of Palasa town in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, where a stampede claimed ten lives on Saturday, owes its existence to the resolve of 94-year-old Hari Mukunda Panda.

A decade earlier, Panda had an unpleasant experience at Tirumala temple, where he was denied proper darshan of the presiding deity Lord Sri Venkateswara. Determined to create a similar shrine accessible to all, he devoted twelve acres and forty cents of his fifty-acre estate to build the temple, investing his own funds over six years.

Panda inaugurated the temple four months ago, even as some finishing touches remained, spending approximately Rs 2 crore on construction. The main deity is a nine-foot-nine-inch idol of Lord Venkateswara, a replica of the main idol at the Tirumala hill shrine, accompanied by separate sanctums for consorts Sree Devi and Bhu Devi.

"When I was a kid, I used to go to Tirumala very frequently. Whenever I went there, I would stay atop and have darshan multiple times. The Archaka Swamis were so friendly and helped us get good darshan. But that's all past glory. Almost ten years ago when I went there, I had a very bitter experience. I waited for long hours in a queue, and when I went inside the temple, they just pushed me. I could not even have proper darshan. I shared this bitter experience with my mother after I returned. She then advised, 'Why don't you build a Venkateswara Swamy temple in our village itself so that you can have darshan and also provide it to many others?' That's when we decided to build a temple," said Panda on an earlier occasion.

He said their family's intention was to provide a similar experience to the Tirumala temple, which is why the main idol is modeled with the same height as the Tirumala deity idol. He also said they plan to provide almost the same popular Laddu prasadam that is given at Tirumala temple to devotees. Out of the 50 acres his family own in Kasibugga he got registered 12 acres 47 cents in the name of 'Lord Srinivasa'.

Panda spent his own funds without accepting any donations to build the temple, which is nestled amidst coconut groves and orchards. Even at age 94, Panda leads an active life and drives a tractor. The temple complex, spread across twelve acres, also houses different small temples.

"I never expected that so many devotees would turn up today. We thought it would be around 2,000 devotees as usual and didn't inform the police," said Hari Mukund Panda on Saturday after the incident. He visited the hospital where the injured are undergoing medical treatment. Police and revenue teams have taken the temple into their control after the incident.