Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday offered prayers at the hill temple of Lord Venkateswara.
Clad in traditional white dhoti, kurta and an upper cloth, Mr. Modi reached the temple ‘Mahadwaram' (main entrance) to the customary reception by priests and TTD authorities who escorted him into sanctum sanctorum. The chief priest, who explained him the significance of the presiding deity and importance of the town, honoured with ‘Sesha vastram’ of the Lord. He also went round the inner precincts of the hill temple and made deposits into the temple Hundi. Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan and Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy also accompanied him in the darshan. Later, the priests showered ‘Vedasirvachanams’ on him, while the TTD authorities presented him with the ‘laddu prasadam’ and memento of the deity.
Unprecedented security arrangements were made for Mr. Modi's visit both at Tirumala and Tirupati.
Heavy deployment of police forces were made atop the hill town and restrictions were slapped on the movement of pilgrims. Vehicles were permitted to ply only on the outer ring road as all the arterial roads remained closed even hours before the arrival of the Prime Minister.
The entire temple premises was taken over by the SPG officials for ‘sterilisation’. The craze among the devotees outside the main temple complex was quite palpable. Interestingly the pilgrims displayed placards seeking special category status.
