Kinjarapu Union Minister Rammohan Naidu and Agriculture Minister K. Atchannaidu consoled the bereaved family in Tekkali constituency of Srikakulam district on Sunday.
With inconsolable grief and amid loud sobs, family members on Sunday performed the last rites of nine persons who were killed in a stampede at the Sri Venkateswara Temple at Kasibugga in Srikakulam district on Saturday.
There was a gloom in villages like Rameswaram, Sivaramapuram and Pittala Sariya where the deceased hailed from.
Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu and Agriculture Minister Kinjarapu Atchannaidu on Sunday consoled the bereaved families while assuring that the government would take care of them in future.
They also handed over ₹ 15 lakh to each of the families as ex gratia from the state government and assured them that the ₹ 2 lakh ex gratia announced by the Union government from the PM Relief Fund would be given to them soon.
The ministers further stated that the 25 injured persons were provided with state-of-the-art medical care in various hospitals.
‘Instructions coming soon’
Addressing the media in Nandigama, Mr. Rammohan Naidu said that the government would soon come out with guidelines for crowd management in all temples.
Meanwhile, District Collector Swapnil Dinakar Pundkar and MLA Gondu Shankar handed over checks of ₹ 3 lakh each to the injured admitted to GEMS Hospital in Ragole village.
Endowments Minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy visited the temple and asked about the reasons behind the stampede.
Development of the temple
He later told the media that a committee has been constituted to investigate all aspects of the incident. “Though the efforts of Trustee Hari Mukund Panda in building the temple are commendable, the disregard for the safety of devotees on Karteeka Ekadashi has caused immense agony to many,” said Mr. Ramanarayana Reddy, assuring that the government would take steps to develop the temple after taking the opinion of Agama Shastra experts.
He further said that there would be no darshan of the presiding deity in the temple for several weeks. “As per the temple traditions, special rituals as per Agama Shastra will be performed for the devotees before reopening the temple,” he added.
Meanwhile, BJP state president PVN Madhav, Anakapalle MP CM Ramesh and Etcherla MLA N. Eswara Rao consoled the injured persons at a hospital in Palasa area.
YSRCP leader Dharmana Krishnadas appealed to the government to increase the ex gratia to ₹25 lakh for each of those killed and ₹5 lakh for each of the injured.
Published – 02 Nov 2025 19:37 IST
