Andhra govt starts construction of new temple chariot after 62-year-old vehicle damaged in fire

East Godavari District (Andhra Pradesh) [India], September 20 : The Andhra Pradesh government has initiated construction of new chariot for Antarvedi Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple on September 19, after a 62-year-old religious vehicle caught fire on September 6.
The log needs to be 41-feet-long and 6 feet circumference and the wood should be more than 100 years old. Cutting of the logs has been started.
Construction of new chariot and repair of the chariot shed will incur an expenditure of Rs 95 lakh. The new chariot will be used in the place of the chariot that was recently gutted in fire, as per K Ramachandra Mohan, Andhra Pradesh endowments department additional commissioner.
"The teak wood log needs to be 21 feet long and with a circumference of 6 feet and should be more than 100 years old. Such teak wood logs are identified at a timber depot in Ravulapalem town of East Godavari district. Today the work of cutting the logs has started. About 1330 cubic feet of wood will be used in the construction of the chariot," Mohan said.
He further said that the new chariot will be built in the exact model as the old chariot and will be 41 feet high with a width of 6 feet wide, complete with 6 wheels and 7 stairs.
The Andhra Pradesh government issued an order on Friday to hand over the investigation into suspected arson at the temple to the Central Bureau of Investigation.