The TTD has set in motion the conventional drill to gear itself up to host the two major events ahead of it—firstly, the 9-day annual Brahmothsavam of the Lord Venkateswara due to get off to a spiritual start on September 18 at Tirumala and secondly the annual fete of the Goddess Padmavathi of Tiruchanur, scheduled to take off on October 15.
TTD’s Joint Executive Officer (Tirumala), J. Srinivasa Raju was closeted here on Saturday with the Superintendent of Police, Tirupati Urban Police, J. Prabhakar Rao, TTD’s Chief Vigilance and Security Officer, G.V.G. Ashok Kumar and other heads of the departments concerned to discuss the arrangements for the two fetes which would attract a huge congregation of pilgrims from all over.
The meeting laid special focus on the security arrangements and the traffic regulations to be made for the events to ensure that they passed on a pleasant note without any glitch.
Constant monitoring
Briefing media persons after the meeting, Srinivasa Raju said that special CC-TV cameras would be installed at all sensitive spots where the density of the pilgrim movement would he heavy and the proceedings constantly monitored to avoid any untoward incidents.
The police department was asked to round-off suspicious characters and the pick-pockets who are normally seen working overtime during the festivals.
Special queue-lines also are to be provided at the Kalyana Katta (tonsuring centre) and at the free luggage counters to ensure a hassle-free movement of the lines. Raju said that a mock-Garuda Seva would be conducted at Tirumala on August 30 ahead of the real-time Garuda Seva to study the working of various systems, so that any shortcomings noticed could be addressed.
On the Garuda Seva day at Tirumala which would draw a huge crowd, two-wheelers would not be allowed to ply on the Tirumala-Tirupati ghat roads, so that they are entirely left free for the buses and other four wheelers, instead of getting choked by the 2-sheelers used mostly by the locals to visit Tirumala for the festival.
Special ticket counters
For the benefit of the locals and others, special ticket counters would be provided at different places in the town and buses operated from there.
Among other TTD officials who participated in the review meeting were, Additional Vigilance and &S.O. (TTD) Venkata Sivakumar Reddy, VGO, M.L. Manohar, General Manager (Transport), Sesha Reddy besides APSRTC and Engineering Department heads.
