2 days Ago By Avinash P. Subramanyam
The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has tackled the longstanding 'Dalari' problem on the Srivari Mettu pedestrian route to the Sri Venkateswara Temple in Tirumala by reintroducing the Divya Darshan (DD) token scanning. This has put an end to fraudulent practices that caused difficulties to the pilgrims for years. Unscrupulous auto-rickshaw and jeep drivers operating from Tirupati's bus stand and railway station used to hold out promises of "special darshan" for pilgrims and seek exorbitant fees for this.
They exploited the devotees' unfamiliarity with the darshan procedures for pilgrims trekking the Tirumala hills via the Srivari Mettu route. Previously, due to fears over wild animal attacks, devotees trekking to Tirumala were allowed darshan without scanning at the 1200th step of the Srivari Mettu route after they took the DD tokens. Drivers took advantage of this leniency by camping at transportation hubs in Tirupati to lure devotees with false promises of arranging darshan tickets.
A network of auto and jeep drivers acted in ways as to bypass the trekking requirement. They would transport devotees directly to the ticket counter, enabling them to receive tokens without completing the pilgrimage on foot. This practice not only violated TTD regulations but also resulted in devotees paying substantial sums for this illicit service, officials said.
TTD Executive Officer J Syamala Rao reinstated the regulations. The revived measures make it mandatory for devotees with DD to.
