Extra rush for Godavari Pushkaram due to holiday week-end

An additional 5,000 security personnel were today deployed by the Andhra Pradesh government to deal with the extra rush of pilgrims at Godavari Pushkaram here and other places due to Eid and Sunday holidays.
The stepped up security is to help in crowd management and avoiding any untoward incident at the mega religious event -- also called Kumbh Mela of South -- where a stampede claimed 27 lives on the first day of the festival (July 14).
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu today personally monitored arrangements on the fifth day of the 12-day festival. He told reporters that government was taking steps to shift pilgrims from crowded ghats to other bathing sites.

"We are monitoring the situation from a control room. We are making arrangements in accordance with the rush of pilgrims at various ghats," the Chief Minister said.
Due to the Eid holiday and Sunday, authorities expected 20 to 25 per cent increase in pilgrim arrivals.
Therefore, Naidu said he has directed officials to set up two reception centres to streamline pilgrim movement and avoid crowding at ghats.
As many as 5,000 additional police personnel drawn from other states have been deployed across the ghats (bathing sites), Deputy Chief Minister N Chinnarajappa said.
In neighbouring Telangana, most of the highways witnessed traffic jams as lakhs of devotees travelled to various Ghats in the state set up by the Government on river Godavari to take the holy dip. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao reviewed the situation with senior officials.