Srimukhalingam temple chief priest Naidugari Rajasekhar on Saturday alleged that sanitation was poor on the temple premises and that stray dogs were regularly entering the premises due to lack of supervision by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), particularly at night.

He said the historic temple, under the control of the ASI, was littered with garbage and lacked proper sanitation and maintenance. He said he had recently submitted a memorandum to District Collector Swapnil Dinakar Pundkar, seeking remedial measures as pilgrims from different parts of the country visited the temple dedicated to Lord Siva.

Meanwhile, Mr. Rajasekhar submitted a detailed representation to the Lokayukta in Kurnool on Thursday (October 1) over the poor condition of a new road laid recently adjacent to the temple and the flood bank of the Vamsadhara river.

He alleged that the Panchayat Raj Department had ignored the prescribed norms while laying the road using VB-G Ram G funds and had failed to respond to the issue. Mr. Rajasekhar said the Lokayukta had issued notices to the officials concerned, seeking an explanation for the damage to the newly laid road.