TIRUMALA TEMPLE STAYS OPEN AMID COVID CURBS

HYDERABAD: The YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government in Andhra Pradesh has imposed a partial lockdown for 18 hours a day to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the state, but the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams which manages the famous temple of Lord Venkateshwara at Tirumala in Chittoor district, continues to remain open for pilgrims.

Though TTD suspended “Sarva Darshanam” (free darshan of the deity) for pilgrims with effect from April 12 in view of the surge in Covid-19 cases, it has been allowing darshan for pilgrims who purchase “special darshan tickets” for ₹300 apiece. Last year, TTD, for the first time ever, shut down the Tirumala temple for pilgrims due to outbreak of Covid-19. The shutdown of the temple which began on March 19, 2020, continued up to June 8. The daily rituals for the presiding deity, however, continued with a limited number of priests. The temple reopened for pilgrims on June 9. Since June last year, TTD restricted the number of pilgrims visiting the temple for free darshan because of stringent Covid-19 restrictions. Initially, it used to issue 3,000-4,000 Sarva Darshanam tokens every day, as against the average footfall of 65,000-70,000 pilgrims a day.

Gradually, it increased the number of tokens to 22,000 during weekdays and around 25,000 during the weekends in March this year, but then, the second wave struck. “In April, when the second wave of Covid-19 struck the state, the number of tokens was restricted to an average of 15,000-20,000 a day,” a TTD spokesman said on condition of anonymity.