Hyderabad, July 20 -- Thousands of devotees thronged the historic Laldarwaja Simhavahini Mahankali Ammavari temple in the Old City of Hyderabad on Sunday to celebrate the vibrant Bonalu festival with devotion and grandeur.
Women, dressed in traditional attire and carrying decorated brass pots filled with cooked rice and jaggery-known as Bonam-formed long queues outside the temple to offer their prayers to the presiding deity, Goddess Mahankali.
As part of the state's official participation in the festivities, Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu, on behalf of the government, is scheduled to present silk garments to the goddess and perform a special pooja, according to temple sources.
To ensure the smooth conduct of the...