JOIN USWith Vaikuntha Ekadasi falling on Sunday, nearly one lakh devotees are waiting in long queues in the Tirumala hills to catch a glimpse of Lord Balaji.
While 50,000 pilgrims are inside the 32 compartments, the rest are waiting in the open.
The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) expects 75,000 devotees and 3,000 VIPs would step through the Uttara Dwara when it opens on the midnight of Ekadasi, while the rest would have the darshan of Lord Balaji on the Dwadasi day on January 9.
“We can accommodate another 4,000 devotees by adding a few more lines,” said TTD Executive Director D Sambasiva Rao, who is present in the temple to personally supervise the crowd. “If the numbers cross 70,000, we will not be able to provide accommodation. I urge them (the crowd) to get into temporary shelters,” he said.
The TTD has already constituted separate committees to manage Darshan and accommodation. In all, 7,000 rooms have been kept ready for accommodation and stay is strictly restricted to 24 hours.
The temple management has also kept 10 lakh laddus ready to meet the demand. Both the Ghat roads have been kept open round the clock, while food will also be served along the foot route from Alipiri, besides distribution of Anna Prasadam at the queue complex.