AP CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy commissions Chariot of Sri Lakshminarasimha Swamy temple of Antarvedi

The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has commissioned the Chariot (Ratham) of Sri Lakshminarasimha Swamy temple of Antarvedi yesterday coinciding with the auspicious day of Ratha Saptami.

The  Chief Minister offered Puja and Aarti and dragged the giant forty-feet chariot to herald its commissioning. Earlier, the Chief Minister was given a traditional welcome on his arrival. He had a darshan of the main deity and participated in the puja after which he has been given Vedasirvachanam.

The CM  later  proceeded to the  colourfully decorated  Ratham and offered puja and aarti. The seven-tier Chariot was commissioned with the Chief Minister along with his cabinet colleagues formally drawing it



forward.

The new chariot with six wheels and seven tiers was made out of 1330 cubic feet of  teak wood and is equipped with hydraulic brakes and has a protective shed with iron gates.  State Ministers, MPs, MLAs, and officials were present on the occasion.

A 60-year-old wooden Chariot of the Antarvedi temple was gutted in a mysterious fire in September last year, sparking a political and religious row which forced the state government to seek a CBI inquiry.  The new chariot was built at a cost of Rs 1 crore after a fire gutted the previous one on September 5.  

The Chief Minister has instructed for replacement and work on the new chariot which was completed in record time ahead of the annual Kalyanotsavam.