My rendezvous with Begumpet Railway Station.

After my son, Ch. Srikanth shifted to Bangalore for better prospects; we miss him a great deal. We eagerly await his fortnightly and sometimes once in a month, weekend homecomings. And fortunately, even at short notice, travel plans between Bangalore and Hyderabad are possible.

There are about 75 buses daily; connecting Hyderabad and Bangalore. And there are six trains between these two cities on Fridays and Sundays. With an excellent highway and very comfortable buses and plenty of them, covering a distance of 560 Km. under 8 hours, a bus journey is quite popular. It is a different matter that the bus fares shoot up towards weekends. However, my son prefers travelling by train by planning his trips well in advance, as tickets are virtually impossible to obtain at short notice. And the most convenient train for him is the Yesvantpur – Secunderabad – Yesvantpur, Air-conditioned Garib Rath Express Train. After office, he starts for home from Yesvantpur on a Friday at 20:50 hrs. and on his return journey, he reaches Bangalore on Monday morning at 07:10 hrs. well in time to attend office.

Though Secunderabad Railway Station which is the starting and terminating Station for this train; is just 2.5 km. from our house, I prefer to pick him up and see him off from Begumpet Station which is 3.9 Kms. away from our house and one Station away from Secunderabad Station. The reasons are; on Saturday morning when I pick him up at 08:20 hrs. and on Sunday evening when I see him off at 19:20 hrs. the traffic along this route is barest minimum and Begumpet being a very small Station with just two platforms, it is very convenient for Srikanth to move between the train and our car, parked just at the Platform Entry Gate of  Begumpet Station!

TERROR Returns To Hyderabad, 20 Killed & Over 100 Hurt.

Today, 21st of February is ‘International Mother Language Day’.

I Have Become A Granduncle Once Again! Today.

Blessed with a Grandnephew on 19th Feb. 2013, at 0830 Hrs.

Above video is of my one day old Grandnephew and the photos in it are of him soon after his birth, dressed in his mother's childhood sweater!

Valentine's Day Party! - 2013

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Surrounded by Hearts!
Closest to Your's!

-N. Lalitha Raghu.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Wish a great get-together!

With all your near & dear!

-N. Raghu.

Sree Bhadrakali Sametha Veerabhadra Swamy Temple, Bonthapally.

‘Sree Bhadrakali Sametha Veerabhadra Swamy Temple’ is an ancient Temple located 36 km. away from our house at Secunderabad.  If you are looking forward to a short outing, away from the hustle and bustle of city life or for religious reasons this is certainly a place to visit.

The Temple is located in Bonthapally village in Jinnaram Mandal of Medak district. For driving directions, you may see the route map I have provided below this article. The Temple is 36 km. from Paradise along the route I have indicated.

This Temple of Lord Shiva and Goddess Bhadrakali is a very ancient one and is said to be in existence from times before the Kakatiya Empire. The main Temple is of Lord Veerabhadra Swamy and just behind it to the right is the Temple of Goddess Bhadrakali. You can see these Temples and the area around them in the above photographs. And at the bottom of this article, you can see the images of the idols in these two Temples.

According to popular folklore, after King Daksha Prajapati (a hater of Lord Shiva, more so as his daughter Sati / Dakshayani married Lord Shiva) got killed, his followers came to live in the area between River Musi and River Manjira. And here they began to persecute devotees of Shiva. Then Lord Shiva appeared in the form of Lord Veerabhadra Swamy to end this persecution and choose to settle down at the present place of this Temple which was then a dense forest with many Bilva trees considered to be dearest to Lord Shiva. As this place was full of trees and always dark, people felt it was like a black-haired caterpillar; called 'Bontha purugu' in Telugu and named this place after the insect as Bonthapally.

Even today; there is a dense forest adjacent to Bonthapally spanning over an area of 40 sq. km. It is known as Narsapur Reserve Forest and it is the largest forest close to the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

You may click on the following link to see the official website of the Temple: 

http://www.bonthapallytemple.com/index.php

Why are authorities blind to this cruel reality?

Here is an interesting photo-verse by my wife on the price of vegetables in our city; mercilessly hiked by middlemen. Middlemen bargain and procure vegetables from farmers at an extremely low price; move them by a short distance and sell them to us at an abnormally high price.

As an example, she illustrated the price of a Pumpkin we bought for Rs. 15, 25 Km. away from our house at a village shandy. And this Pumpkin would have cost us Rs. 72/- in the city! An unbelievable 480 percent increase. The same is the case with all other vegetables grown in neighbouring villages.

Truly middlemen are called parasites. Unchecked and ungoverned their misdeeds and greed are harming the farmers and us.

The cost of this Pumpkin,

Is just Rupees fifteen!

At a village Shandy,

Outside Secunderabad City.

And in Secunderabad City,

It is Rupees forty a Kg.

That is Rupees seventy-two!

A price escalation of 480%!

This is how middlemen loot us!

There is no end to their greediness.

Middlemen also pinch money from farmers,

And the authorities are clueless to end this mess.

- Mrs N. Lalitha Raghu.

The delay in formation of Telangana State should end immediately.

News about Supreme Court frowning about frequent adjournments and on Speedy Justice has appeared in every Newspaper of the country, on Internet and on TV, today.  I hope politicians and people in power will understand the meaning of SC observations and solve problems before them sincerely and expeditiously, specially the promised and announced formation of Telangana State, as frustrated people of the area are committing suicide every time there is a new announcement giving excuses for going back on assurances and commitments. This perennial delay and the tragedy following it should end immediately. 

Your News With Our Photo!

News of Sri Sita Ramachandraswamy Temple at Ammapally, with our photo in yesterday’s ‘Namasthe Telangana’: 

A Fairy Tale Book specially published for our granddaughter, Sudhiksha!