'Take Voluntary Retirement Or Transfer': Tirupati Temple Board Tells Non-Hindu Staffers

Months after the Prasadam controversy that arose following Andhra Pradesh leader Chandrababu Naidu's sensational claim about adulterated ghee being used to make the prasad (laddoo), the newly constituted Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Trust Board, in its first meeting on Monday, decided to soon terminate the services of all non-Hindus working in the TTD and surrender them to the Andhra Pradesh government.

The TTD Trust Board, headed by Chairman BR Naidu, held its meeting at Annamayya Bhavan in Tirumala.

After the meeting, BR Naidu told reporters that TTD would assess the total number of non-Hindus working in various capacities within the temple administration and surrender them to the government.

"We shall write to the state government to take appropriate action regarding the non-Hindus working in Tirumala. The TTD is a Hindu religious institution, and the board felt that it should not employ non-Hindus in the temple. We will request the government to either absorb them into other departments or offer them a voluntary retirement scheme (VRS)," Hindustan Times quoted Naidu as saying.

Naidu also informed that the Trust Board had decided to transfer all TTD cash deposits from private banks to nationalized banks. He stated that, in the coming days, the deposits will be withdrawn from private banks and deposited in nationalized banks.

“The TTD Trust Board has decided to use advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, to reduce the time pilgrims currently spend waiting for darshan of Lord Venkateshwara from 20-30 hours to just two-three hours. We will consult experts in this regard,” he said.

According to news reports, the Trust Board discussed 80 agenda items during the meeting.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu accused the former YSRCP government of using substandard ingredients, including animal fat, in the preparation of Tirupati laddus.

In response, the Supreme Court intervened on October 4, establishing an independent Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate these claims. The court highlighted the importance of Tirumala prasadam to millions of devotees worldwide and stressed the need to avoid turning the issue into a political drama.

The SIT will comprise two officers from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), two from the Andhra Pradesh police, and a senior official from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The new SIT will be supervised by the CBI director, replacing the previous state government-appointed team.