AI For Better Pilgrim Management, Says TTD Chief

Addressing reporters in Hyderabad, he said the TTD board had cleared the proposal and the tools would enable real-time monitoring and predictive analysis of pilgrim flow once technical procedures were finalised.

Naidu said non-Hindu employees would either be shifted or given voluntary retirement, warning of strict action against religious propaganda. He added that temple construction was being taken up to counter conversions, with 320 temples already built and plans for 500–1,000 more nationwide on Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s directions.

The chairman said the Annadanam programme at Vontimitta was continuing with ₹4 crore allocated by TTD, while efforts were on to expand forest cover under its jurisdiction, which accounts for 90 per cent of the region’s forests.

Raising concern over cyber frauds related to darshan tickets and prasadam, he said a dedicated cyber security lab was being set up, noting that 30,000 fake websites had been removed in the past year. VIP darshan timings had been restricted to 8–8.30 a.m. to avoid inconvenience to pilgrims, he added.

Defending his nine-month tenure, Naidu asserted that all board decisions were transparent and no funds misused. He claimed he had not used even his quota of 100 tickets, stressing, “We came here to serve Lord Venkateswara, not to loot.”

Naidu hit out at YSRC leaders and a vernacular daily for allegations against him. He accused former chairpersons Y.V. Subba Reddy and Bhumana Karunakar Reddy of irregularities, alleging Bhumana’s family indulged in large-scale corruption, leaving TTD with an interest burden of ₹140 crore. He also charged associates of ex-minister R.K. Roja with selling tickets at inflated rates, while 12 hotels were allotted to party functionaries under the YSRC regime. The present board, he said, had introduced e-tendering for hotels and planned new ones soon.