Hyderabad, Dec 17: President Droupadi Murmu arrived in Hyderabad on Wednesday for a five-day winter sojourn. Telangana Governor Jishnu Dev Varma, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, ministers D. Sridhar Babu, and Seethakka accorded a warm welcome to the President at Air Force Station, Hakeempet.
Chief Secretary K. Ramakrishna Rao, Director General of Police B. Shivadhar Reddy and senior civil and defence officials received the President. The President later left by road for Rashtrapati Nilayam at Bollarum, where she will stay till December 21 as part of her winter retreat.
Police had made tight security arrangements and diverted traffic at various points on the route to Rashtrapati Nilayam. On December 19, the President will inaugurate the National Conference for the Chairpersons of Public Service Commissions, being organised by the Telangana Public Service Commission in Hyderabad.
On December 20, she will address a conference on ‘Timeless Wisdom of Bharat: Pathways of Peace and Progress’, being organised by Brahma Kumaris Shanti Sarovar to mark its 21st anniversary in Hyderabad. Central government and state government departments, as well as Rashtrapati Nilayam officials, made elaborate arrangements for the President.
The police and fire services department have deployed personnel and provided adequate fire safety arrangements and fire tenders. The medical and health department has also kept a medical team on standby at Rashtrapati Nilayam.
A snake catcher team has also been kept available round-the-clock at the Rashtrapati Nilayam, as snakes are commonly found in the premises due to the sprawling green area. The GHMC also deployed special teams to tackle the monkey menace in the vicinity of the Rashtrapati Nilayam.
Arrangements were also made for catching honeybees. The President stays at least once a year in Rashtrapati Nilayam and conducts official business from here. The building was constructed in 1860 as the country house of the British Resident at Secunderabad.
After Hyderabad’s accession to India in 1948, it became the President’s retreat. First President Rajendra Prasad had stayed here in 1955, and since then, every President has visited Hyderabad for a southern sojourn of at least one week every year.
IANS
