A ghastly tragedy occurred at the Simhachalam Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple in Visakhapatnam in the early hours of Wednesday. The wall fell close to the ticket counter as devotees were waiting in a queue for darshan during the annual Chandanotsavam. Eight devotees, some of them women, were killed and four others were injured. Following the tragedy, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu immediately ordered an inquiry to Simhachalam temple Tragedy.

Inquiry to Simhachalam temple Tragedy:

Deplored by the Chief Minister with the loss of innocent lives, a three-member committee was directed to be constituted to investigate the incident thoroughly. Naidu asserted that it was necessary to inquire into the reason behind the wall collapse, particularly as the situation was said to have aggravated with heavy rain during the night. In a teleconference with Anam Rama Narayana Reddy, Dola Bala Veeranjaneya Swamy, Vangalapudi Anitha, and Simhachalam temple trustee Ashok Gajapathi Raju, Naidu requested detailed information regarding the incident and immediate medical attention.

To mitigate the suffering of the bereaved families, the Chief Minister declared an ex-gratia payment of Rs. 25 lakh to each of the deceased’s families. Further, he assured that one member of every affected family would be given employment. On outsourcing basis in temples that come under the Endowments Department. For the injured persons, a relief amount of Rs. 3 lakh was sanctioned, an assurance of the government towards helping those who were affected by the tragedy.

Urgent rescue and safety actions:

Following the collapse, police and fire department squads rushed to the scene to clear the debris. And to transfer the injured to surrounding hospitals. The Chief Minister also directed clearance of the remaining debris immediately so as not to create any further inconvenience to the devotees. As thousands of devotees are expected to turn up to participate in prasad and darshan. Stringent security and crowd control measures have been directed to avert panic and ensure devotees’ safety.

The steps taken by Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu highlight the government’s active response to the Simhachalam temple tragedy. With a proper investigation in progress and strong support mechanisms in place for the victim families. The state is committed to dealing with the aftermath of the incident and avoiding such incidents in the future.

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