Pics of Chitravathi Harathi point in Puttaparthi that I took on 5th Sept. 2019 afternoon when it was almost empty

Last updated on 14th Sep. 2019

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In associated Facebook post of mine,  https://www.facebook.com/ravi.s.iyer.7/posts/2586374368245791, I made the following comment (slightly edited) in response to a question:

Chitravathi Harathi point is a place where bhajans are held every Thursday. It is at the end of Chitravathi Road at the point it meets the Chitravathi river bed (now usually dry river bed).

The bhajans here was started by a devoted ashram staff (Shopping Centre staff, if I recall correctly), in the immediate period after Mahasamadhi (in 2012 perhaps), when this platform construction was not there, and, if I recall correctly, it was just sand. Initially when he started this event, he made a small altar using low-cost material and after the bhajan was over, they would offer arathi (harathi). That's how I think the place has got named Chitravathi Harathi point.

Over the years, the event started attracting more people. Later, as the state government invested in improving outside ashram Puttaparthi town and promoting it as a spiritual (tourist) destination, the state government decided to put up this platform and also make the small altar a slightly bigger one. They have also made a nice walkway at the side of the road running parallel to Chitravathi river bed, with this platform being roughly halfway in the walkway (you can't see the walkway in these pics).

I believe the state government plans then were much more grand with plans of some statue of Sathya Sai being put up in the Chitravathi River bed for which the platform would be a good viewing point. But, perhaps due to lack of funds, those plans have not fructified so far. What the state government was able to accomplish was this platform (a really nice one) and the walkway (which is also pretty decent though the tiles had given way in a few places and I don't know whether they have fixed that now).
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I took additional pics (over 30) on 13th Sep. 2019 which I have put up (along with the above pics) in a public Google Photos album titled, "Chitravathi Harathi Point at Puttaparthi and walkway next to it". Here's the link to it: https://photos.app.goo.gl/dtZYJYqj7UhhGV1p6.

I am including just one additional pic from above album here:

Close-up view of the altar/temple in Chitravathi Harathi Point