Tirupati, January 22: The Justice Wadhwa Committee, set up by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams for verification of the ornaments in the Venkateswara temple on Tirumala and in other temples managed by the TTD, said that no item was lost and that it was fully satisfied with the system in vogue for protection and maintenance of the ornaments.
The committee, headed by retired Supreme Court judge justice Wadhwa, retired supreme court judge, was set up on January 4 last year. It submitted its 137-page report, including 22 recommendations, to TTD Specified Authority chairman J Satyanarayana today.
The committee members as well as justice Jagannatha Rao, who was appointed by the state government to go into the security system for the safety of the temple ornaments in TTD temples and also verified the jewels simultaneously, was also present during the submission of the Wadhwa report.
Speaking to mediapersons, justice Wadhwa said that the committee did not find anything wrong in the TTD security system adopted for the protection of the temple jewellery as well as its maintenance. “We have suggested to the TTD to make use of modern technology to have a more transparent and foolproof system for the protection of jewels,” he added.
Justice Jagannatha Rao said the Tiruvabharanam register, being maintained in Tirumala temple since 1952, had no mention of any temple ornaments received from Vijayanagar emperor Krishnadevaraya. After the identification of jewellery (items) at random in the lockers in the temple at Tirumala and other temples and also the treasury were the ornaments were in safe custody, the committee concluded that all the items were intact, he said.
After the examination of other aspects including assaying the quality and originality of the precious and antique ornaments by experts including gemologists and from the government mint to where the TTD gold jewellery was sent for conversion into pure gold bars, the committee was fully satisfied with TTD’s measures for the security of the ornaments and saw no tampering in any form or manner, he added.
Committee coordinator PVRK Prasad explained that as per the Tiruvabharanam register there were 370 ornaments made of gold and precious stones, both big and small. Of these, 100 adorn the main idol in the sanctum sanctorum and 70 adorn the processional idols. The rest are kept in lockers. The committee verified all the items in the lockers and also the ornaments on the idols at random and in a phased manner and they perfectly matched with the list in the Tiruvabharanam register, he added.
There was no register for the ornaments in the temple before 1952, except the information of handing over the jewels by a priest in 1939, which was tallied with the 1952 register. The temple was under the control of Mahants from 1840 to 1933 and from then under the endowments department till the creation of TTD board, Prasad explained.
TTD executive officer IYR Krishna Rao said that the report vindicated the TTD ensuring the safety of the God’s ornaments and also dispelled the doubts or misconception over the protection of jewels. “It will also help to sustain the image of TTD, which received a setback following adverse reports at the national level on the safety of ornaments,” he said.
The Wadhwa committee suggested a hi-fi internal security in view of the increased terror perception across the country, R Prabhakar Rao, another member, said.
In addition to the verification by financial adviser and chief accounts officer(FA&CAO), the committee also wanted verification by a special team to be set up and also by a team of archakas of the jewels on the main deity as others are not allowed to enter the sanctum sanctorum often for surprise verification.
The members said in one voice that they were amazed at the register containing every minute details of the ornaments, including any damage or anything lost and also the recovery of the cost from the concerned, and also the meticulous care taken by the staff for maintaining the record or the ornaments.
–Agencies