TIRUMALA: Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) executive officer (EO) J Syamala Rao on Saturday admitted several lapses, including supply of substandard food at Annadanam canteens, abrupt cancellation of milk supply to infants and children at the queue, and a decrease in the quality of Laddus and Annprasadam.
Speaking to mediapersons after a month of regular reviews with all the TTD departments, Syamala Rao said, “Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu informed me about these lapses, which were confirmed true. Even the devotees have complained about substandard food and the lack of food at Annadanam canteens. There was no milk supply for children and there was no higher authority to make a complaint or give a suggestion.”
To address these concerns, he said that the TTD is planning a major overhaul at all levels, including setting up a National Standard Laboratory (NSL) in collaboration with major national institutes.
The current administration has appointed three Assistant Executive Officers to be available at all times.
“We will maintain the quality of food on an on-time basis not only in the main canteen but also in three food distribution centres,” Syamala Rao.
During this month, the number of toilets at the Queue Complex and the queue line has doubled. The Engineering Department officials were instructed to set up additional complexes and queue lines on a permanent basis.
The executive officer also highlighted the modernisation of the Annadanam canteens, including changing the utensils used with technology that will help workers, cooks, and suppliers handle giant vessels more efficiently.
He expressed surprise at the lack of quality checks for ingredients and ghee, which are crucial for the famous laddus and other prasadam offerings. “The procurement of ingredients is worth `500 crore, with `250 crore allocated for ghee. However, there is no quality check system or staff, which is surprising to me,” he stated.
To address these quality issues, the TTD will set up a comprehensive laboratory, including a full-fledged branch of the FSSI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) and a mobile app to test food in real-time.
Additionally, TTD is maintaining eight major canteens and hotels in Tirumala under private management and plans to introduce a new policy to bring in reputed and renowned brand hotels. “We will ensure that only reputed hoteliers participate in the tender process and maintain high standards,” Syamala Rao said.
The EO also mentioned that darshan timings might change shortly after evaluating customs and virtual timings to provide darshan to all visitors.
“In the past two weeks, we have increased the number of direct entry devotees to 1.65 lakh per week,” he noted. The TTD IT department was criticised for its inefficiencies. “Recently, it was discovered that one person used his ID and Aadhaar card 1,800 times to book darshan tickets,” he said.
Several issues are under investigation, and the new Joint Executive Officer for Tirumala and Chief Vigilance and Security Officer are expected to join shortly. They will handle transfers and form new teams in their respective departments, the EO concluded.