AP plans high-tech arrangements for Godavari Pushkaralu, expects 10 crore devotees

Andhra Pradesh plans technology-driven arrangements for the 2027 Godavari Pushkaralu, with AI crowd analytics, drones, CCTV and QR-based vehicle identification. The 12-day festival is expected to draw nearly 10 crore devotees, with 440 ghats and extensive infrastructure and safety measures planned

Amaravati: The Andhra Pradesh government plans to deploy advanced technologies for the 2027 Godavari Pushkaralu, a major river festival expected to cost more than Rs 4,000 crore. Officials told Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu at a review meeting that AI-based crowd analytics, CCTV monitoring, drones, QR-based vehicle identification and decentralised systems would be used for safety and crowd management.

Naidu instructed officials to organise the 12-day festival, scheduled from June 26 to July 7, 2027, on a grand scale while ensuring that devotees face no inconvenience. Arrangements are being planned for nearly 10 crore devotees, with about 10 months left for the event. Naidu directed officials to expedite the commencement and completion of all works.

---

Officials said the Finance Department had allocated Rs 899 crore for the works, with most being undertaken by the Municipal Administration, Roads and Buildings, Water Resources, Energy and Panchayat Raj departments. A total of 4,932 works are planned across six districts-1,869 in East Godavari, 1,501 in Konaseema, 625 in West Godavari, 426 in Eluru, 321 in Kakinada and 190 in Polavaram. Officials said 4.8 crore devotees took holy dips during the 2015 Pushkarams, while up to 10 crore are expected to attend the 2027 edition.

“Nearly one crore devotees could take holy dips every day. To manage the expected crowds, arrangements are being made for a total of 440 ghats,” the release said. Of these, 259 existing ghats will be developed and 181 new ones constructed. The proposed ghats are 175 in Konaseema, 88 in Kakinada, 82 in East Godavari, 44 in Eluru, 40 in West Godavari and 11 in Polavaram.

Noting that the Godavari region is home to several important pilgrimage centres, Naidu directed officials to develop a tourism circuit linking major temples such as the Shakti Peetham at Pithapuram, four Pancharama temples, Dwaraka Tirumala, Annavaram, Vadapalli and Antarvedi. He suggested promoting homestays to enable visiting devotees to explore the region’s tourist and spiritual destinations and called for expediting approvals for new hotel projects.

Naidu instructed officials to construct a convention centre in Rajamahendravaram to host various programmes and called for inviting prominent personalities from across the country and abroad to the Pushkarams. “This should be seen as an opportunity to showcase the uniqueness of the state and enhance its prestige,” he said, directing the Endowments and Tourism departments to formulate plans for large-scale cultural programmes, including Kuchipudi performances.

The CM directed officials to ensure that roads across all six districts hosting the Pushkarams, particularly those connecting the ghats, are pothole-free. He called for developing roads to facilitate visits to the Polavaram Project and directed officials to prevent sewage from entering the Godavari River and take strict action against violations. He instructed officials to complete development works at Havelock Bridge and nearby islands.

Arrangements are being made to ensure uninterrupted medical services, with ambulances, first-aid facilities and medical camps to be deployed. Thirty temporary field hospitals, along with associated laboratories, will be established, the release said. Officials said 50 of the 260 gram panchayats in the Godavari basin districts had been proposed for development as Model Pushkar Panchayats.

Muni Kudali in Seethanagaram mandal of East Godavari district has been selected as the pilot Model Pushkar Panchayat. Development works will cover the Kovvur-Polavaram-Pattiseema road, a BT road from Seethanagaram to Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage, avenue plantation and beautification, and road development from the barrage to Kovvur. Proposals have been prepared to develop the national highway between Rajamahendravaram and Polavaram. To reduce pollution during the Pushkarams, 487 green-energy buses will be deployed, and 11 bus stations will be modernised.

As part of the safety arrangements, 2,697 rescue boats will be kept ready. Naidu called for world-class, integrated arrangements covering infrastructure, transportation, sanitation, drinking water, medical services, security, accommodation and technology. As several tributaries, streams and canals feed the Godavari before it reaches the sea, Naidu suggested exploring the theme ‘Akhanda Godavari’, symbolising the entire river system, for the Pushkarams, the release added.