Tirupati, June 01: Devotees desiring to participate in the rituals - Thomala, Archana and Kalyanotsavam - performed in the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara at Tirumala, must observe the traditional dress code from today, according Thirumala Tirupati Devasthanam. TTD chairman P Chalapathi Rao told newsmen earlier that as per the decision taken at the meeting of TTD board, only male devotees wearing ‘dhoti’ and 'kanduva' (upper cloth) and the female devotees wearing sari and blouse or ‘chudidars’ would only be permitted in the Thomala, Archana and Kalynotsavam. He said gradually, the traditional dress code would be imposed on the devotees participating in other rituals performed in the hill shrine. If the devotees respond positively on the dress code, the TTD would make in mandatory to all devotees visiting the shrine. Rao said the board also decided to auction in all 10 tonnes of foreign coin offerings accumulated in the TTD over the years. In another decision, the board also decided to shift the 600-year old massive 1000 pillared Mandapam from right in front of the shrine to behind the "Pushkarani" (holy tank) at a cost of Rs 4.4 crore, he said.

As part of beefing up the security, four sophisticated body scanners have been brought from Nasik, which would be installed at four important points in the temple complex, Rao said.

Bureau Report