Hyderabad, May 20 -- The 12-day Saraswati Antya Pushkaralu at Kaleshwaram will begin on Thursday, May 21, with Kanchi Peethadhipati Jagadguru Sri Sankara Vijayendra Saraswati and Telangana Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla taking the ceremonial first holy dip at 5.43 am, the state government said.

The Pushkar bathing rituals, which run from May 21 to June 1, are expected to draw between 30 and 40 lakh pilgrims, for whom the government has made extensive arrangements at an outlay of Rs 30.63 crore.

A prominent seer from a different peetham will take the ritual bath each day during the 12-day period. Daily homams will be conducted in the mornings, with large-scale cultural programmes scheduled each evening. A special museum has been set up unde...