Andhra Pradesh boat tragedy: Papikondalu popular despite bad weather

HYDERABAD: The Telangana tourism department might have temporarily pulled the plug on the Bhadrachalam- Papikondalu package due to unfavourable weather condition, but thousands of citizens from the city continue to visit the place as a weekend getaway.
Officials said that many people tend to drive or hire special vehicles to Bhadrachalam from the city during weekends and added that it is difficult to furnish exact number of people travelling to the location from Hyderabad or other parts of Telangana.While Telangana State Road Transport Corporation officials said that about 1,500 use their services to reach Bhadrachalam, South Central Railway officials confirmed that 5,000 people avail their services daily.
"From the Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station (MGBS) as many as 15 buses ply to Bhadrachalam. While on average, about 1,000 passengers travel daily, on Fridays the number of travellers go up to 1,500," said A Raghuramaya, station manager.
Telangana tourism department officials said that they ply two to three buses with a capacity of 40 seats each from Hyderabad to Papikondalu daily, but added that they are currently not offering the package owing to weather conditions.
"We have stopped the tour due to heavy water flow. But, generally about 150 people, especially from IT industry use our services every week as the tour begins on Friday and denizens will be back by Monday morning," said an official, adding that they also provide mini-buses, cars, and other vehicles on hire
Officials said that many use trains to reach Bhadrachalam from the city seven trains- two express trains and five passenger trains, ply from Hyderabad to Bhadrachalam and back, daily.
"On an average, Bhadrachalam station handles about 5,000 passengers daily. During weekends, the number is higher," said an official of South Central Railway.
Officials from the AP tourism department said that about 4,000 visit Papikondalu daily and a majority of them work in Hyderabad. According to officials, 26 boats and 8 ferries from Polavaram and 35 boats from Kunavaram are used to ferry tourists daily.
A site of worship
Bhadrachalam is a Hindu pilgrimage site in Telangana. This place is home to a 17th-century temple of Lord Rama and Sita.As the temple is located on the banks of Godavari, many prefer taking a boat ride, which also includes a night stay in the forest, from Rajahmundry to Godavari to enjoy scenic beauty of Papikondalu.