Who managed the Tirupati Temple during the British rule?

Tirupati Balaji Temple is one of the holiest places for Hindus. Now, a lab report has revealed that animal fat and fish oil were used in making the temple prasad. In Hinduism, prasad is offered to God. Hence, Tirupati Balaji Temple has been in the news lately. Currently, the temple is managed by the Andhra Pradesh government, but do you know who managed the temple during the British rule? Let us know.

This story is five thousand years old, Lord Sri Venkateswara, also known as Srinivas, Balaji and Venkatachalapathi. He settled in Tirumala. It is located in the Tirumala hill town of Tirupati in the Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh, India. Lord Venkateswara is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu and it is believed that he appeared here to save humanity from the suffering and troubles of Kali Yuga. Hence, this place is also known as Kaliyuga Vaikuntha and the deity here is known as Kaliyuga Pratyaksha Daivam.

There is some disagreement among different historians about the history of Tirupati, but it is clear that it was a major religious centre in the fifth century. It is said that the Chola, Hoysala and Vijayanagara kings made huge financial contributions to the construction of the temple. In 1933, the Madras government took over the management of the temple and handed over the management of the temple to an independent management committee “Tirumala-Tirupati”. After the formation of Andhra Pradesh, the committee was reorganized and an administrator was appointed as the representative of the Andhra Pradesh government.

It is believed that this temple building was built in 300 AD. According to the temple website, these three idols placed in front of Lord Sri Venkateswara reflect their devotion to him. It is said that Sri Krishnadevarayalu himself installed these idols on 2nd January 1517 AD and since then, this pavilion is known by the name of Krishnadevarayalu Mandap. The names of these statues are engraved on their epaulets.

In 1843, the East India Company relinquished control of the temple.
In 1843, the East India Company handed over the management of the Tirupati Temple to the Mahants of Hathiramji Math. Till 1933, for the next six generations, the Hathiramjis looked after the temple. Thereafter, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam was formed under the TTD Act. Thereafter, this system also changed in 1951. It was abolished by the Madras Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act, 1951. In 1966, the temple was brought under the direct jurisdiction of the state endowments department under the Andhra Pradesh Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions Act.

Who is managing the Tirupati temple now?
Later in 1979, the 1966 law was amended to form the new Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam Act. Today, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) is controlled by the Andhra Pradesh government and the head of TTD is also appointed by the government. The money received from this temple is used for various works of the Andhra Pradesh government. This means that now this temple is run by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), which is under the Andhra Pradesh government. The head of TTD is appointed by the Andhra Pradesh government.