Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, February 15 Lakhs of devotees converged at Jyotirlinga shrines across Maharashtra on Sunday to offer prayers on the occasion of Mahashivaratri, with the Grishneshwar Temple alone expecting a massive influx of four lakh pilgrims.
The district rural police have implemented tight security measures, deploying 450 personnel at the Grishneshwar Temple, considered the 12th Jyotirlinga in the country, to ensure smooth crowd management and access to the shrine.
Nearly four lakh devotees are expected to visit the shrine at Ellora by Monday morning, an official said.
"The temple will remain open for devotees throughout the night. Parking spaces have been made available at least a kilometer away from the temple this year," a senior official from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar rural police told PTI.
At least 32 officers, 175 home guards, and 250 police personnel have been deployed in the temple area, he said.
Lakhs of devotees also queued up at the Parli Vaijnath Temple, a Jyotirlinga shrine in the Beed district.
The Beed police have deployed a staff of nearly 250 personnel, including officers and home guards, who will remain in the area until Monday morning.
Devotees waited in long queues for two to three hours to worship here, an official said.
At the famous temple of Aundha Nagnath in the Hingoli district, considered the eighth Jyotirlinga, the district administration has provided basic amenities for devotees, and a drone show is also scheduled at the temple in the evening, he said.
Mahashivaratri, one of the most important festivals dedicated to Lord Shiva, is marked by prayers, fasting, and night-long worship across the country.
