Thungabadhra Pushkaralu

The Tungabhadra Pushkaralu is a religious festival is a festival which is celebrated to worship the river Thungabadra, in the state of Andhra Pradesh. It is celebrated once in 12 years for a period of 12 days and the event is considered highly auspicious.

Tungabhadra River

• The river Tungabhadra originates from the state of Karnataka and continues to flow through the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. It ultimately merges with the Krishna River.
• Tungabhadra River is formed by meeting of Tunga River and the Bhadra River at Koodli.
• The river was known as Pampa in Ramayana.

Key Points related to festival

• The festival is celebrated when Jupiter enters Capricorn (Makar rashi) which is the zodiac linked with the river.
• Every year, people take dip in the river during the festival with a belief to get rid of their sins.
• Pilgrims visit famous temples on the banks of the Tungabhadra River during the festival located in Alampur, Jogulamba Gadwal district of Telangana and Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh.
• Some of the places visited are Hampi, Hospet, Kampli, Kurnool, Mantralayam, Alampur, etc.

Thungabadhra Pushkaralu 2020

The state Government of Andhra Pradesh has announced that this year’s Tungabhadra Pushkaralu would be held from November 20 to December 1, 2020. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has inaugurated the 12-day festival and 23 ghats have been arranged for the occasion. In addition to this, 350 priests have been appointed for the festival. In view of the ongoing COVID pandemic, the Government has disallowed people to take dip in the river.  Also, pilgrims are allowed only through e-ticket systems. The state government allocated Rs 2.3 crore for the arrangements of the 2020 Tungabhadra Pushkaralu festival.