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No agreement yet on power for pilgrims

Staff Reporter

Collector reviews Kalachakra arrangements with officials

AMARAVATHI (GUNTUR DIST): Some Buddhist pilgrims, who stay put in temporary tents during the Kalachakra-2006 at Amaravathi in Guntur district following the State Government and the Dharamshala-based Norbulingka Institute organising the event not yet arriving an agreement.

The Government is providing streetlighting in all the five places chosen for accommodation and the 10-acre site chosen for preaching, but power supply to individual tents is still a question mark. The Norbulingka Institute does not have enough funds to provide power to the pilgrims as it involves large amount of investment for wiring and fixtures.

Plea to Government

It has requested the State Government to provide the facility so that the material could be used in some project nearby, but there is no decision yet on that. Regarding streetlighting also, the Amaravathi Panchayat expects the Government to invest on the poles and fixtures for the Kalachakra so that the same could be shifted to permanent villages. Contrary to this some officials were proposing hiring of fixtures, which would benefit a few suppliers monetarily.

District Collector G. Jayalakshmi held a series of review meetings here with the Rural Water Supply Department, Panchayat Raj, the Roads and Building, Fire and A.P. Transco from Tuesday night till Wednesday evening. All departments gave their schedule of work execution.

Work behind schedule

The levelling of land is already more than 15 days behind schedule and the contractors for pitching the tents have dumped first consignment of the material at Daranikota. The first tent was being erected on Wednesday at one of the Budget Class accommodation being provided by the Norbulingka.

Erection of electrical poles, power and distribution transformers was in progress, some toilets were erected while the pre-cast moulds were being prepared for the rest. Preparation of a helipad close to the preaching site and barricading of the accommodation sites was yet to be planned.

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