‘Varuna Yagam’: Prayers for Rain in T'gana

The Government of Telangana on Monday conducted ‘Varuna Yagam’ to pray for abundant rainfall across the state. Under the aegis of the Endowments Department, the rituals were conducted by the Yadagirigutta Temple priests and Vedic scholars.

The ‘Yagam’ involves 108 ‘Rithwiks’, 11 ‘Homa Kundas’ (sacrificial fire pits), and a team of Vedic scholars and priests.

Irrigation Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy and his wife participated in the Yagam, which began early Monday morning on the banks of the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam across the Krishna River in Nalgonda district.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy will participate in the ‘Poornahuti’ (concluding ritual offering) ceremony in the afternoon.

Endowment Minister Konda Surekha, Roads and Buildings Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, other ministers, MPs, MLCs, MLAs and others will participate in the rituals.

The priests and scholars of the Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple at Yadagirigutta had fixed the auspicious date and time for the ‘Varuna Yagam’.

Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy said they decided to conduct 'Varuna Yagam' to pray for the all-round well-being of the people of the state and the country and for abundant rainfall and bountiful harvests.

He said they were also praying for the vigorous flow of the Krishna and Godavari Rivers, hoping for the filling of the Nagarjuna Sagar reservoir as well as all other reservoirs and tanks across the state and wishing for Telangana to remain free from the impact of El Niño.

Though the rains in the second half of July and early this month brought down the rainfall deficit during the Southwest monsoon to 5 per cent, reservoirs in the Krishna and Godavari River basins are yet to see good flows.

The two major rivers are yet to receive significant inflows to ensure adequate availability in the state's reservoirs and irrigation systems.

According to officials, Nagarjuna Sagar, one of the major dams in the state, currently has 145.65 TMC against its gross storage capacity of 312.045 TMC, and its water level is around 518 feet compared with the full reservoir level of 590 feet.

On August 9 last year, Nagarjuna Sagar had about 310.25 TMC of water, with the reservoir level at 589.40 feet, nearly at full reservoir level.