In what devotees consider as a bad omen, the Kalasam on the threshold Gopuram at the entrance of the famed Sri Kalahasteeswara temple in the temple town of Sri Kalahasti today fell down and broke into pieces.

This Gopuram is known as the Kanchi Kota Gadapa and the devotees fear that its falling to the ground may spell trouble for the state. “It is not at all good. The authorities should have taken care of this,” said a devotee at the temple.

The negligent attitude of the temple authorities in preserving and protecting the centuries-old temple precincts has once again come to the fore with the incident. It might be mentioned that the Rajagopuram of the temple, built by the King Sri Krishna Devaraya of the Vijayanagara empire, collapsed one year ago and the state government has ordered its reconstruction with the help of archeological experts and sculptors.

Reacting to the fears expressed by the devotees, the temple EO said that the fall of the Kalasam is not a bad omen. “The Kanchi Kota Gadapa Gopuram is centuries old. It has fallen down because of constant attack on it by monkeys and doves,” the EO said, adding that it would be restored immediately through Vedic purification.