Lord Balaji temple to reopen for public darshan from June 11

"Only 6,000 devotees per day as against the normal rush over 60,000 would be allowed entry and COVID-19 precautionary measures, including six feet distance between each other and wearing of face mask, would be strictly followed," officials of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which administers the ancient shrine, said.

PTI

June 05, 2020 / 17:22 IST

The famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara at nearby Tirumala will reopen for devotees from June 11 but with very limited numbers per day, more than 80 days after public darshan was stopped due to coronavirus pandemic, top temple officials said on Friday.

"Only 6,000 devotees per day as against the normal rush over 60,000 would be allowed entry and COVID-19 precautionary measures, including six feet distance between each other and wearing of face mask, would be strictly followed," officials of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which administers the ancient shrine, said.

The ban on entry of devotees, enforced on March 20, was being lifted from June 11 and less than 500 people per hour would be permitted entry for 13 hours from dawn to dusk every day, TTD Chairman Y V Subba Reddy, Executive Officer Anil Kumar Singhal and Additional Executive Officer A V Dharma Reddy told a joint press conference at Tirumala.

Children aged below 10 years and elderly people above 65 would not be allowed into the shrine, thronged by devotees from across the country and overseas throughout the year, they said.

All TTD employees involved in regulating devotees would be wearing personal protection equipment (PPE) suits.

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