Dharmasthala (Karnataka) (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday offered prayers at the Dharmasthala temple as part of his visit to Karnataka to attend various public events.

Modi landed in Mangaluru, about 350km from the state capital, earlier on Sunday and flew in a helicopter to the temple town of Dharmasthala, about 100 km from the port city of Mangaluru.

The Prime Minister waved to crowds gathered at the entrance, before praying at the temple dedicated to Lord Manjunatheshwara.

On account of the Prime Minister's visit, the temple administration has restricted public entry up to 2 p.m. on Sunday.

The Dharmasthala temple is one of the renowned religious landmarks of south India, with a history of over 800 years.

Modi will later address a public rally at Ujjire town near Dharmasthala and hand over RuPay cards to the Pradhan Mantri Jan Than Yojana (PMJDY) account holders.

Later in the day, Modi will fly to the state capital Bengaluru to attend a public function organised by the Vedanta Bharati at the Palace Grounds.

In the evening, he would inaugurate the 110km Bidar-Kalaburgi railway track in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region that would reduce the distance between Bengaluru and New Delhi by 380km and travel time by six to eight hours.