30 cases booked this year against middlemen for cheating Tirumala devotees
Tirupati, Sept 1 (TNT): The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has registered 30 criminal cases this year against middlemen for allegedly cheating devotees by promising Srivari Darshan, accommodation and other facilities, while disciplinary action has been taken against 43 employees for violation of conduct rules.
Strict action would be taken against middlemen and employees involved in cheating devotees and urged pilgrims not to depend on unauthorised persons for darshan, accommodation, Sevas, tokens or other facilities, TTD sad in a release here on Tuesday.
The temple management said it had also identified 249 fake websites that were misleading devotees with attractive advertisements, posters and false promises, particularly regarding accommodation.
Two criminal cases were registered and all the identified websites were removed with the support of the concerned agencies.
TTD appealed to devotees to rely only on official sources for information and services and cautioned them against fake websites and suspicious links using the TTD name.
Meanwhile, the temple management said arrangements had been strengthened at Tirumala to handle the growing pilgrim rush and ensure smooth and peaceful darshan.
Crowd management, queue regulation, drinking water, Annaprasadam and security arrangements were being monitored continuously.
Special arrangements were being made in advance for major occasions, including Vaikunta Ekadasi, Rathasapthami and Srivari Brahmotsavams, which attract large numbers of pilgrims.
TTD also said strict checks were being conducted at Alipiri and Srivari Mettu checking points to prevent prohibited items from being carried to Tirumala.
As many as 261 drones and 105 Meta smart glasses had been detected and seized at Alipiri this year.
Drones, smart glasses and other recording devices are prohibited in the Tirumala temple area for security and privacy reasons, it said.
TTD urged devotees to follow the prescribed guidelines, cooperate with officials and rely only on official information to avoid fraud and ensure a peaceful pilgrimage.
TNT LE
