Tirumala, May 17: In the wake of shocking reports of irregularities in the advanced reservation of Arjita Seva tickets, the Tirumala Tirupati Devsthanams (TTD) has initiated measures to streamline the system.
The most important of such measures is introduction of `photo-identity proof ’ and every Arjita Seva ticket holder has to mandatorily show his or her ID proof at the entrance of Vaikuntam Queue Complex. The new system came into force on Friday (May 14).
Since not every one amy be aware of the new system, even though it had much publicity in the media and the officials were directed to inform the devotees who booked the tickets in advance, some lenient view is being adopted in initial stage.
According to TTD officials, the first week or 10 days will be considered a trial run to gauge the response of the devotees to the new system and thereafter it will be strictly implemented. It is found that the devotees, who had not carried any ID proof with them, were contacting their known persons or some acquaintance in TTD to establish their identity. Even though officials look satisfied, it will not be the case after a week or ten days.
The new system was introduced on the advice of chief minister K Rosaiah who took a serious note of the Arjita Seva Adavanced Booking scam.
The vigilance report said that some devotees, with the help of Arjitam Computer Cell staff, booked tickets of different Arjita Sevas for several years in advance _ up to 2029 or even 2035. In most of the cases, several Arjita Seva tickets were booked in a single name or on single address, denying the chance to others.
Since even getting a single ticket is a tough task, several eyebrows were raised when some devotees managed to book several tickets. In one case, not fewer than 450 Vastram and Abhishekam tickets were booked.
On Friday several Vastram and Abhishekam tickets booked under the Advanced Reservation System were cancelled. Sources said that nearly 22 percent of the tickets booked under Advanced Reservation System were genuine and TTD officials had a tough task ahead in weeding out the tickets booked by `scamsters’.
–Agencies