Record 25 lakh pilgrims throng Tirumala shrine in May

Tirupati: A record number of more than 25 lakh devotees offered prayers at the Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple at Tirumala as the pilgrim rush peaked at the hill town in May.According to TTD sources, about 25.46 lakh devotees worshipped at the Tirumala temple in May, compared with a footfall of 23.79 lakh registered in the corresponding month last year.Cancellation of VIP break darshan, coupled with the efficient pilgrim crowd management systems adopted by the TTD with the launch of the Integrated Command Control Centre at Tirumala, helped the TTD administration facilitate darshan for over 25 lakh devotees in a hassle-free manner in May.TTD additional EO Ch Venkaiah Chowdary and his close team of officials also ensured that, despite a surge in pilgrim rush, the outside queue lines were well coordinated within the stipulated timeframe, thereby reducing the inconvenience caused to visiting devotees due to inordinate waiting time for darshan.In line with the pilgrim rush, Hundi collections rose significantly at the Tirumala temple in May. The overall Hundi collection reported in May was Rs 120.28 crore, compared with Rs 106.8 crore in May last year.Similarly, the count of devotees offering human hair (Talaneelalu) as part of the fulfilment of their vows also shot up drastically in May. According to TTD sources, about 12.19 lakh devotees got their heads tonsured and offered their hair at the Kalyanakatta tonsure centres in May as against 10.26 lakh tonsures reported in May last year.With the pilgrim rush likely to continue till the culmination of the summer vacations, the Tirupati trust has already announced that the curbs on issuance of VIP break darshan on recommendation letters will continue till July 15 in order to accord top priority to the common devotees visiting the hill town.