Tirupati: The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) on Saturday announced that the Sarvadarshan (free darshan for devotees) will resume at the famous Tirumala temple in Andhra Pradesh only after the World Health Organization (WHO) de-notifies the COVID-19 global pandemic.
Dr. K.S Jawahar Reddy, the chairman and executive officer of TTD, said the temple administration has been imposing curbs on pilgrim footfall to the Tirumala hill for the past few months due to the pandemic.
He said TTD was compelled to issue only limited darshan tokens at Tirumala due to COVID-19. However, it had increased the special entry darshan tickets quota to 8,000 tickets a day from 5,000 tickets based on requests from devotees.
He said the temple administration which has simplified the room allotment process to devotees has now introduced a complaint tracking system which will help visiting devotees get their grievances resolved in real-time, he added.
Mr. Reddy said pilgrims can register their complaints at 9989078111 and their grievances will be resolved before their departure from Tirumala.
TTD records showed that about 5.32 lakh devotees visited Tirumala temple and the temple received Hundi collections of Rs. 44.48 crore in July 2021. TTD also received Rs.3.97 crore through e-Hundi. Goddess Padmavathi Ammavari temple at Tiruchanoor also received a Hundi donation of Rs.3.97 crore in July, Mr. Reddy said.
He added, "We are planning to set up a theme park in Tirumala and also planning to develop the Japali temple."