tirupati temple in andhra pradesh Image source: PhotosIndia.com/photosindia/Getty Images
Andhra Pradesh’s Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) on Monday passed a resolution under which non-Hindus on the board have been asked to voluntarily retire or be transferred to other government departments in Andhra Pradesh. Manages the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati. This is the richest Hindu temple in the world. TTD chairman BR Naidu has given information about the proposal, but he refused to reveal the exact number of non-Hindu employees.
According to sources, the move will affect about 300 of the board’s 7,000 permanent employees. In addition, TTD has about 14,000 such contract workers. Trust chairman BR Naidu said the decision was also supported by many employee unions. He also said that only Hindus should be responsible for temple work.
TTD bill revised three times
The TTD Act has been amended three times over the years to provide that only Hindus can be appointed as members of temple councils and allied bodies. According to information, a government order issued in 1989 also stated that appointments to TTD management posts would be restricted to Hindus only. However, despite these regulations, non-Hindus continued to work within the organization.
Controversy over Ladu
Recently, controversy arose over Raddus’ recommendation as Prasad. Regarding Prasad, the TDP issued a report stating that ghee samples contained “animal fat”, “lard” (related to pig fat) and fish oil. The TDP collected Prasad’s sample for this purpose on July 9, 2024 and issued a related report on July 16.
