Tirumala being spruced up for Brahmotsavam

By Our Special Correspondent

TIRUPATI, SEPT. 20. With barely ten days to go for the commencement of the grand annual festival, the "Brahmotsavam", in the temple of Lord Venkateswara, the shrine and its surroundings are being spruced up for the occasion which would attract nearly a lakh of pilgrims daily from all over.

Work is already under way to erect colourful arches and festoons all over the hills besides giant-sized serial-light cut-outs of the deity in different forms to add colour to the festival. TTD artists are busy giving finishing touches to the cut-outs and the serial-lamp images and are almost working non-stop to erect them at their assigned spots in Tirupati and Tirumala and all along the main roads leading to Tirupati besides on the ghat road.

The temple and its interiors which remain choked with pilgrims daily are being cleansed while steps are under way to wash and smear the interior walls of the sanctum sanctorum with a rich paste made of refined camphor, saffron, sandalwood powder and other spicy items. The imposing deity of Lord Venkateswara would be adorned with the rarest of ornaments including the multi-crore diamond-studded crown, befitting the occasion.

As for the arrangements to augment the facilities for pilgrims and to cope with the huge influx the TTD management led by its Executive Officer, Mr. P. Krishnaiah, has urged the S.C.Railway to operate Brahmotsavam specials to Tirupati from important cities like Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam etc to meet the demand of pilgrims. The APSRTC as in the previous years would be pressing into service additional buses and also operate more services on the ghat road to meet the rush.

The TTD is seriously working to ensure the availability of at least one lakh laddus daily to meet the demands from the visiting pilgrims by engaging more staff and operating more giant-sized ovens in its massive temple kitchen, "Potu". It is also keen on getting the second queue complex ready for the Brahmotsavam so that it could accommodate at least 10,000 pilgrims till they get their turn for darshan.

The Executive Officer, Mr. Krishnaiah, is keen on providing maximum time for free darshan and is also simultaneously trying to tone up the functioning of the computerised "Sudarsanam" token system designed to make the pilgrimage as pleasant as possible for thousands who throng the hill temple from all over during the gala fete. The EO has said that the ensuing Brahmotsavam would be the acid test for the "sudarsanam" token system and its efficacy in view of the reservations now over its very utility and necessity as well.

Special parking lots are being provided on the Hills and traffic would be regulated to ensure free and fast movement of thousands of vehicles expected to criss-cross between Tirupati and Tirumala during the festival. Sources indicacted that Doordarshan is contemplating live telecast in its regional and national network of at least a few prime sevas and Vahanas during the festival period as it does every year.

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Section  : Southern States
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