Vaikunta Dwara darshan from Jan 2 to 11

Tirupati: The TTD decided to provide Vaikunta Dwara Darshan to devotees at Tirumala for 10 days beginning from Vaikunta Ekadasi on January 2 next year.

At the Trust Board meeting presided over by chairman YV Subba Reddy at Tirumala on Wednesday, the Board discussed the elaborate arrangements to be made for the 10-day Vaikunta Dwara Darshan. Accordingly, the TTD will issue 25,000 SSD tokens online for darshan and another 50,000 tokens daily to locals in Tirupati through special counters. In order to provide darshan to more number of devotees, all Arjitha Sevas were cancelled. Briefing the media on the decisions taken at the board meeting, the TTD chairman said the meet resolved to speed up the construction of the temples taken up from Srivani Trust funds and the District collectors and Endowments department will be roped in for the completion of works as early as possible to boost of Sanatana Dharma Pracharam through the temples in the State.

A committee also would set up including experts to go into the long pending issue of hiking the salaries of all the temporary employees including contract, outsourced and also those under societies to ensure fair deal to the employees working for 10-15 years in TTD, Subba Reddy said.

It was also decided to take up the works of gold coating of Ananda Nilyam (dome of sanctorum) of Lord Venkateswara temple in February and the work will be completed in six months. The gold with TTD which was donated by devotees will be used for the gold coating which was last done in 1957-58.

The other resolutions passed including to invite tenders for building a spiritual city at Alipiri,, for purchase of furniture for Nandakam guest house Rs 2.90 crore, to construct safety walls all along second ghat road Rs 9.05 crore, modernisation of Padmavathi guest house at Tirumala Rs 3.8 crore,

The Trust Board also sanctioned Rs seven crore for the temple coming up in J and K, for construction of boys hostel in SVIMS at Rs 3.35 crore, for purchase of medicines and surgical items for TTD Hospital at Rs 2.86 crore and to develop Thathaya Gunta Gangamma temple at Rs 2.75 crore.

Reddy disclosed that the TTD cancelled the contract with the firm supplying manpower to manage the laddu counters for sale of laddus to devotees after finding irregularities on the part of the employees of the contract firm.

He said cases were booked against the persons involved in the irregularities. Alternative arrangements were made by engaging TTD employees for providing laddus to devotees, he said. The board also decided to provide Brahmotsava Bahuman, a cash incentive to the employees for successful conduct of Brahmotsavams this year, following the previous practice. EO Dharma Reddy was also present.