Subsidised sale of Tirupati laddus gets very good response in Hyderabad

Large crowd of devotees gathered at Himayat Nagar in Hyderabad after the sale of the famous Tirupati 'laddu' resumed, which received a great response. Laddus were sold at Rs 25, instead of Rs 50 and around 1.10 lakh pieces were sold on Sunday. Officials said that social distancing, wearing masks, health protocols were strictly followed.

Hyderabad (Telangana): There was a tremendous response from devotees to subsidised sales of the famous 'Tirupati laddu at Himayat Nagar in Hyderabad, which is the sacred prasadam of the Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirupati, an official said.

Officials said that around 1.10 lakh pieces of laddus were sold on Sunday.

About 1.35 lakh laddus, priced at a subsidised Rs 25 each instead of the normal Rs 50, were made available at the information centre of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, of which 1.10 lakh had already been sold since sales began on Sunday, the official said here on Monday.

The entry of devotees to the more than 2000-year-old temple, that used to draw thousands from across the country every day during normal times, has been barred since March 25 to check the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

TTD then hit upon the idea of selling the laddus at subsidised prices in various places, including Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Chennai.

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As part of the exercise, it commenced sale of laddus in Andhra Pradesh on May 25. Many devotees expressed satisfaction at having received the prasad, but were disappointed at not being able to have darshan at the temple, while others decided to distribute the laddus free of cost, the official said.

He said the information centre was expected to receive laddus on Tuesday as well. Various precautions to be taken due to COVID-19 like social distancing, ensuring that all wear masks, provision of sanitizers and wearing of gloves were being followed, he said.(With inputs from agencies)