TELANGANA REUTERS, 9TH August 2026: The Katta Maisamma Temple stands majestically adjacent to the Hussain Sagar bund, right in the heart of the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad in Telangana. The temple shares a history as rich as that of the Hussain Sagar bund itself. During the reign of Ibrahim Quli Qutb Shah over the Hyderabad kingdom, a decision was made to excavate a lake to meet the needs for drinking and irrigation water. The task was entrusted to his son-in-law, Hazrat Hussain Shah Wali. A lake spanning 5.7 square kilometers was excavated, and a sturdy bund made of stone was constructed. Some of the hardworking laborers who toiled on the construction installed and worshipped the Goddess Maisamma at the bund. When Hazrat Hussain Shah Wali arrived on horseback and asked what they were doing, the workers explained that they were worshipping the village deity, Maisamma; they prayed to her to ensure the bund remained intact and to protect the people living downstream from being submerged. Pleased to find that the laborers shared the same wish he held, Hazrat Hussain Shah Wali offered all the gold coins he had in his pocket to the Goddess, paid his respects, and departed. Since then, devotees have referred to the Maisamma deity installed at the bund as “Kanakala Katta Maisamma.” The Sri Kanakala Kattamaisamma Temple, a renowned shrine in Hyderabad’s Lower Tank Bund area, boasts a rich history. Devotees flock to this temple in large numbers every day. Revered as a deity who grants wishes and fulfills the prayers of the faithful, the temple attracts people even from the city’s outskirts, who travel here—often in traditional carts—to offer their vows.
It is said that the temple gained prominence between 1835 and 1840, during the Nizam era. In the Telangana region, it is customary to find a temple dedicated to this Goddess near agricultural fields and water bodies; this temple was established in keeping with that tradition. Legend has it that when devastating floods struck the city in 1907, a special ritual known as ‘Ganga Puja’ (or ‘Galaga Puja’) was performed to appease Goddess Kattamaisamma and halt the deluge. Devotees believe that the floods subsided as a result and attribute the absence of such calamities since then to the Goddess’s divine grace.
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