Devotees flocked to Indrakeeladri as Bhavani Deeksha Viramana started at Kanaka Durga temple in Vijayawada on Thursday. Temple officials reported over 43,800 visitors on the first day. Of them, 5,618 devotees tonsured their heads. Around 15,000 partook in Annadanam prasadam, while 1,86,000 laddus were distributed. The five-day event began with the Agni Pratishthapana ceremony, involving lighting the homa kundams. Three homa kundas and special counters are set for devotees' offerings. To share event details, the management launched the ‘Bhavani Deeksha 2025’ mobile app, highlighting the 9-km Giripradakshina route around Indrakeeladri. A command control room watches devotees' movements in real time to ensure safety and smooth management. Large resting platforms and dedicated queue lines aid devotees in darshan and rituals. Over 7 lakh devotees from Andhra Pradesh are expected. To handle the crowd, extra parking, 19 prasadam counters, waiting halls, and dedicated queues are arranged. Free drinking water and continuous prasadam supply, including laddus, are assured. Security is strong with 4,000 police deployed and 370 CCTV cameras installed. All Arjitha Sevas are suspended from December 11-16 for better crowd control. Devotees observe a strict 41-day prayer routine during Bhavani Deeksha. The festival will close on December 15 with the Maha Purnahuti ceremony. Temple Executive Officer V.K Seena Naik, Sri Durga Malleswara Swamyvarla Devasthanam Chairman Borra Radha Krishna, and other senior officials monitored the preparations closely.