SANGAREDDY: Endowments Regional Joint Commissioner Ramakrishna Rao submitted a report to the endowments commissioner, recommending action against Edupayala temple executive officer S Srinivas. Srinivas has been found to have kept gold related to the Edupayala and Tuniki Pochamma temples in Medak district at his residence in clear violation of departmental rules. According to the report, storing gold offerings meant for the deities of these two temples at his home instead of a bank is a breach of Endowment department rules.
The officials indicated that the commissioner is likely to take severe action against Srinivas based on this report. Devotees visiting the Durga Bhavani temple in Edupayala traditionally offer gold and silver ornaments in various forms to the presiding deity. Following established procedures, the authorities are expected to submit these precious items to the government mint, which melts them and returns the gold and silver separately. However, Srinivas recently transported two kg of gold and 72 kg of silver from the mint in his car without proper security measures. This prompted an investigation by the higher authorities.
During this investigation, it was revealed that five grams of gold from the Tuniki Pochamma temple in Narsapur constituency had been kept at Srinivas’s residence for nearly four years. The inquiry also revealed that he had failed to hand it over to his successor even after being relieved of his duties, according to V Shivraj, assistant commissioner of the endowment department in Medak district. After the discovery of the unauthorised gold storage, Srinivas eventually deposited the gold in a bank. Meanwhile, there has been criticism that Srinivas, who hails from the Medak district headquarters, enjoys political clout, and some suggest that he acted recklessly.