The decision of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) to suspend issuing of special entry darshan tickets on Vaikunta Ekadasi (January 1) seems to have not gone down well with the residents of Tirumala and Tirupati, with the latter alleging that the move lacked a pragmatic approach.
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When people from across the country throng the shrine for the festival, how can the TTD ignore the locals who attach immense importance to the Lord ?, they asked
A senior college lecturer, Mr. Chandramouli, said that the TTD should show some empathy towards the locals when it came to the darshan of the deity. The TTD had issued over 5,000 darshan tickets at Mahati auditorium last year, in addition to thousands of Divya Darshan tokens which were made available on both the trekking routes, he said.
The TTD has dispensed with the issuing of both Rs. 300/- and Rs.50/- special entry tickets this time as the Ekadasi festival coinciding with the New Year day It has also annulled all forms of privileged darshans extended to special and senior citizens, people with infants and Divya Darshan tokens.
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“Even though the management has allocated around 10,000 tickets (Rs.300/-) on the following day of Vaikunta Dwadasi (January 2), they are available over internet only,” laments a resident.
A retired TTD employee, who wished not to be named, questioned the rationale behind the decision of allocating three previous darshan hours for the VIPs.