TIRUMALA: The joint meeting of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) and the Endowments Department held at Tirumala on Saturday discussed various long-pending issues and took several key decisions. The meeting was chaired by Endowments Minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy along with TTD Chairman BR Naidu, Executive Officer J Syamala Rao and Endowments Secretary Vinay Chand. Several issues pending between the Endowments Department and TTD were reviewed at length.
Speaking after the meeting, Ramanarayana Reddy said that the discussions were fruitful and that solutions had been found to several issues. Some of the major decisions included a Rs 3,000 monthly unemployment allowance to 590 unemployed Vedic pandits and the cooperation of TTD for laying a second road to Kanaka Durga temple in Vijayawada. The board meeting also discussed other major issues such as filling 192 posts in TTD-run colleges and the release of Rs 147 crore for the renovation of various temples. The presence of non-Hindus in TTD institutions and recent statements by Union Minister of State Bandi Sanjay that 1,000 employees belonging to other religions were working in TTD institutions across the country also came up for discussion.
Further, discussions were held on the release of Rs 147 crore funds from TTD for temples under reconstruction. The meeting deliberated on allocating a percentage of the income of temples to the Endowments Department as per Endowment Act-9 and the proposal to allocate nine percent of the Common Good Fund to the department.
With regard to the announcement of new trust boards to temples, the Minister said that the exercise would be completed by the end of August. “All the 1,010 temples will soon get new Trust Boards. In fact, the government is ready to announce the new committees to all the said temples. But because of some political and legal hurdles, the government is waiting for some time,” he said.
“Even today, some of the Trust Boards appointed by the previous government are functioning. Some of the Chairmans are still continuing while their Trust Board members submitted resignations. As there is possibility of those still continuing in their posts approaching court, the government is waiting to announce the new committees to temples once the tenure of existing boards expires so as to avoid legal hurdles,” Anam said.