The centuries-old Nookalamma (or Nookambika) temple in Anakapalli town will be remodelled (structure-wise) like the famous Meenakshi temple in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. At present, there is only one nine-storied Rajagopuram on the eastern side of the temple. Three more Rajagopuras will be built on the remaining three sides to resemble the Meenakshi temple. Apart from this, the sanctum sanctorum will also be expanded.
The redevelopment project consists of two parts and tenders have been given to a contractor named Sridhar Reddy from Chittoor. The cost of the first part is around ₹3.05 crore while the latter is ₹5 crore. Mr. Reddy has experience in the redevelopment of Kanipakam and other temples and is currently working on the redevelopment of Talupulamma Lova temple in Tuni.
“The temple is being redeveloped to cater to the crowd of devotees in future, at least a minimum of 200 years from now. We will start the work on September 7. We aim to complete the main works like structures by February 2024. The balance works like decorative works, painting etc. will be completed by next year-end. The ₹6.55 crore belongs to the temple, remaining ₹1.5 crore is the TTD’s allocation,’‘ the temple Executive Officer Bandaru Prasad told The Hindu.
In the first part, the Garbhaalayam (sanctum sanctorum) will be expanded from 14x14 feet to 17.11x17.11 feet with black stone brought from Piduguralla in Guntur district. In another work, the temple’s Antharaalayam (hallway in front of the sanctum sanctorum) will be widened from the current 12x5 feet to 17x12 feet.
“We will use black stone, as it has a longer lifespan. It is one of the oldest temples in this region and was visited by Sri Krishnadevaraya, emperor of the Vijayanagara empire, we want to preserve its ancient glory and beauty as a heritage temple,” said the project works co-ordinator Dadi Jayaveer.
Mr. Jayaveer further said that every year the Goddess festival is held in March/April after Ugadi in the Telugu calendar year. On average, around 30 to 40 lakh devotees visit the festival from various parts of north-coastal Andhra Pradesh and neighbouring Odisha.
“The unique feature is that the temple celebrates a month-long Jatara [festival]. On the day before Ugadi [Telugu New Year], lakhs of people visit the temple for worship. As the number of devotees is increasing every year, the temple authorities have decided to redevelop it,” said Mr. Jayaveer told The Hindu.
Nookambika is one of the nine forms of Shakti and was popularly known as Sri Anagha Devi in ancient times. It was worshipped as Kakatamba during the Kakatiya period. It was taken over by the Endowments Department in 1935. Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays are considered to be auspicious days for worshipping the Goddess.
