Hyderabad (PTI): Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), the governing body managing the Lord Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati, has decided to provide gold-plating to the whole Ananda Nilayam, the sanctum sanctorum inside the hill shrine.

At present, only a portion of Ananda Nilayam is covered with gold and the TTD is planning to give gold coating to the entire sanctum sanctorum, both interior and exterior, the Board Chairman, D K Adikesavulu Naidu, said in Hyderabad.

The cost of the project is being estimated and it will be made public soon, he said. However, the cash-rich temple was already receiving offers from devotees to donate gold through the hundi (donation box) in the temple and direct contributions, he said.

He said the TTD would consult Peetadhipatis (religious heads) and Agama Shastra pundits before embarking on the project and utmost care would be taken to preserve the rare lithographic treasure available on the temple's walls.

Replying to criticism that the gold-plating could lead to violation of the shastras (scriptures), he asserted that the TTD would move ahead on the plan only after taking the suggestions of the pundits.