Devotees at Tirumala Temple to be tested for COVID-19

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams to test Tamil Nadu devotees, especially, at random

78-venkateswara-temple Venkateswara Temple in Tirupati | Bhanu Prakash Chandra

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD)—custodians of the popular lord Venkateshwara temple on Tirumala hills—has started testing devotees for COVID-19. The temple was reopened on Thursday after being closed for over two months during the nationwide lockdown. With various new measures in place, the focus is on containing the virus.

TTD has started a swab collection unit at Alipiri, the entrance of Tirumala and also another unit on the hills. The aim is to collect around 150 swab samples on a daily basis from the visitors. According to sources, the focus will be on the devotees coming from Tamil Nadu and containment zones in the state. The temple town receives a large number of devotees from Tamil Nadu as it is close to the AP-Tamil Nadu border. With a large number of COVID-19 cases being detected in Tamil Nadu, the devotees from the state are under the scanner. It is also learnt that the TTD is already in possession of the full list of containment zones spread across Andhra Pradesh. After checking the address in the ID proof, the devotee will be asked to take the test, whether the person is symptomatic or not. Post that, they will be allowed to proceed.

Once the swab sample is collected, it will be sent to the Sri Venkateshwara Institute of Medical Sciences in Tirupati, which is part of the medical arm of the TTD. The officials expect the test results to be out in 6-8 hours. The person who takes the test will also be informed through a text message.

The TTD thinks they will have sufficient time to know the status of the devotee’s condition and take any action before the person ventures into the crowded queues of the temple. In case, any devotee is found to be positive, the ambulance on standby will rush out the patient to a COVID-19 hospital in Tirupati. Apart from that, the room where the person stayed will also be sanitised.

Presently, the TTD is allowing only 6,000 devotees per day to visit the temple.