Now, one need not ferry rice bags or mounds of jaggery into the temple of Lord Venkateswara to present the same as per their weight (tulabharam), to the deity to fulfil their vows. The TTD has made alternative arrangements for completing the task.
From time immemorial, pilgrims have been coming to the temple of Lord Venkateswara to contribute coins, jaggery, sugar etc according to the sacrificer’s weight and seek wellbeing.
In recent times, TTD has simplified the procedure of tulabharam inside Srivari temple and has made it convenient for both the pilgrims and the religious institution. “We had a tough task handling tonnes of coins, hence the new procedure has been introduced”, said Nagender Rao, tulabharam incharge at the Srivari temple.
Under the new procedure, TTD accepts all offerings in form of cash only and fixed rates as per quantity to the weight of the sacrificer, like value of one kg of ten paisa is Rs 50, Rs 5 offered is Rs 555 per kg. Similarly rice per kg is valued at Rs 27, sugar at Rs 34, jaggery at Rs 27 and sugar candy at Rs 30.
“We explain to the donor about the total amount to be paid which they should deposit in the Srivari Hundi. However, if someone brings coins we do not reject it, but ask them to put it into the hundi after weighing it,” he says. The entire process of tulabharam account is handled by two nationalised banks.