Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Executive Officer K.S. Jawahar Reddy on Wednesday stated that only those who have obtained darshan tickets will be allowed to travel to Tirumala for Vaikuntha Dwara darshan from December 25 to January 3.
For the first time in the history of the temple, the Vaikunta Dwara darshan has been extended for ten days after securing the nod of eminent religious leaders.
Speaking to reporters, Mr. Reddy said that the TTD has already issued two lakh online darshan tickets of ₹300 each for the 10-day period. In addition to this, around one lakh offline Sarva darshan tokens have also been exclusively made available for the denizens of Tirupati in view of the pandemic.
As the Vaikunta Ekadasi (December 25) is coinciding with Friday, VIPs will be allowed for the darshan from 4 a.m. after the completion of mandatory rituals and weekly Abhishekam followed by the common pilgrims.
The TTD this year is permitting only a limited number of pilgrims for darshan as compared to previous years. Anticipating the VIP crowd to be around 3,000 to 4,000 persons, the EO said additional counters have been set up to cater to their needs.
Earlier, Mr. Reddy, along with Additional Executive Officer A.V. Dharma Reddy, CVSO Gopinath Jatti and other senior officials also inspected the Vaikuntam complexes and the special entry darshan point and took stock of the arrangements.
Meanwhile, sources said the management is also reportedly mulling implementation of Laghu Darshan (darshan from a distance of 30 feet) for the VIPs and Maha Laghu for other devotees.
TTD has also resolved to permit its employees and their dependents besides the pensioners for a one-time darshan and mukkoti pradakshina during the ten days.
