The ever bustling temple of Lord Venkateswara here on Friday wore a deserted look with the TTD resolving to keep it out of bounds to the pilgrims for about one week in the aftermath of the advisories issued by the Government of India and the State government to contain the community spread of coronavirus.
After clearing all the pilgrims who reached the town the previous day, the temple was officially closed for public from afternoon.
Shutters were also pulled down on the massive Nitya Annadanam Complex and no fresh allotment of cottages or guest houses was made.
The TTD categorically said that there would be no disruption in the conduct of daily rituals inside the temple.
Repair works
At a high-level meeting, TTD Additional EO A.V. Dharma Reddy urged senior officials to utilise the opportunity and take up required repair / pending works, and embark on a mass cleaning programme of all the TTD establishments.
As a safety measure, the Security and Vigilance staff were instructed to thoroughly check all the staff members, including archakas and paricharakas, coming out of the temple after their duties.
TTD Chairman Y.V. Subba Reddy promised to adopt a sympathetic approach in accommodating devotees who had already booked their darshan / sevas tickets during the days of the closure.
Meanwhile, devotees were forced to spend arduous time waiting at the bus stands in their quest to motor down to Tirupati. Non-availability of taxis and cabs only added to their misery.
‘Sudden decision’ rattles a few
On the other hand, the “sudden decision” to stop darshan came as a rude shock to the devotees who had reached Tirupati on Friday morning from far away destinations.
Unaware of the developments, the devotees were rattled for not being allowed to either motor or trek up to the temple town.
