Andhra Pradesh : YV Anuradha takes additional charge of Kanaka Durga Temple, Vijayawada
With the allegations over performing Tantrika pooja in the Kanaka Durga Temple Executive Officer A Surya Kumari has been relieved of her duties on saturday. The government relieved A. Surya Kumari from here duties as EO following the row over the alleged midnight tantrik rituals in the temple recently and to “facilitate a proper inquiry.”
Endowments Minister P Manikyala Rao after the preliminary investigation reports from City Police Commissioner Gautam Sawang he replaced her with new Executuive Officer A Anuradha. It was alleged that a tantrik pooja has been performed at the temple’s sanctum sanctorum by three outsiders on December 26 to make Nara Lokesh the next Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.
In reports submitted to Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, the fact-finding committee maintained that EO Surya Kumari failed to restrict the entry of unknown persons into the temple late on December 26. In an interaction with mediapersons, Endowments Minister P Manikyala Rao said Endowments Commissioner YV Anuradha had been given additional charge as in-charge executive officer of the temple. Rao, however, asserted there was no scope of performing tantrik pooja at the temple and that Surya Kumari was removed from the post due to lapses in the temple’s administration.
Endowments Commissioner Y.V. Anuradha took charge as in charge Executive Officer (EO) of the Sri Durga Malleswara Swamyvarla Devasthanam on Sunday. She will be overseeing the temple affairs until the government appoints a regular EO. Temple priests and Vaidic committee welcomed her following temple procedures.
Andhra Pradesh: Tirupati “Hundi” takes a dip in income in 2017
Tirumala’s Lord Venkateswara ‘hundi’ has taken slight dip in the income during the year 2017. The overall income received is pegged at Rs. 995.89 crore when compared to Rs. 1,046.28 crore in 2016. Authorities attributed the decrease of Rs. 50.39 crore to the demonetisation and secondly the Goods of Services Tax (GST).
The initial months of the 2017 (post demonetisation) also saw the country reeling under acute shortage in the availability of the new currency notes and this particular factor they opined had to some extent influenced the ‘hundi’ proceeds. Statistics also revealed a marginal decline in the proceeds earned through the allotment of cottages and guest houses.
Meanwhile, the TTD scripted a new chapter in the temple history by providing darshan to highest-ever over 2.73 crore pilgrims during the year as against 2.66 crore in the previous year. The production of laddus also shot up to 10.67 crore (pieces) when compared to 10.36 crore in 2016. The significant factor is that the year registered a staggering increase of 23.9% in the supply of free food to the pilgrims.
The management, which made the Rs. 300 special entry tickets available online, also recorded an all time high income of Rs. 210 crore during 2017 through their sales.
Andhra Pradesh: TTD to shift 44 non- Hindu employees to other departments
The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam has decided to shift 44 non-Hindu persons working in various temple services against guidelines to other departments. As per the guidelines of the temple, non-Hindus cannot work in any of its services. Though non-Hindus can visit and have a view of Lord Venkateshwara, they should sign a register before entering the queue complex declaring that they have faith in the Hindu god.
To avoid further controversy over non-Hindus getting into Tirumala TTD is planning to enforce a condition for all its employees, that they should all sport “Thiru Namam” (a mark on the forehead having vertical thin line of vermillion with thick vertical lines of white clay on either side joined at the bottom between two eyebrows). “This Thiru Namam symbolises Hindu culture. And only those with staunch faith in Hinduism sport it. This will ensure that all those working in Tirumala are only Hindus,” a TTD spokesman said.
TTD executive officer Anil Kumar Singhal said notices had been issued all the 44 non-Hindu employees seeking an explanation. “We are contemplating sending them to other state government departments in the equivalent cadres and scales,” Singhal told the media. Speaking to the media he said that the Andhra Pradesh government has agreed to consider their deputation to other departments.
The controversy over the working of non-Hindus in the TTD surfaced following a sting operation done by a local spiritual television channel on a senior woman TTD official who regularly goes to churches in the temple town in her official vehicle. The operation evoked strong protests from the local Hindu organisations, who alleged that there were several such persons and demanded that they be dropped from service.
Following complaints, the TTD administration asked chief vigilance and security officer A Ravi Krishna to conduct an inquiry and identify the non-Hindus in the temple services.
The inquiry revealed that the woman officer had been appointed in the TTD in 1986, when there was no restriction on the appointment of non-Hindus in the temple administration, which was only following the rule of reservations. According to TTD sources, in 1988, an order was issued banning the recruitment of non-Hindus in temple administration except in the educational institutions run by it. Again in 2007, another government order was issued banning recruitment of non-Hindus even in educational institutions. The official inquiry revealed that as many as 35 non-Hindus were recruited between 1988 and 2007 in various cadres. Surprisingly, even after the fresh order issued 2007, another seven non-Hindus were recruited in TTD against the guidelines.
Telangana : Syro-Malabar Catholic Church wins back Shamshabad Diocese
The Syro-Malabar Catholic Church scored a historic victory with the inauguration of the Shamshabad Diocese (Hyderabad) with pan-India jurisdiction, excluding the existing 30 dioceses, something they lost in 1886 to the Latin Church. The Vatican, the global headquarters of the Catholic Church and the seat of Pope Francis, had announced the creation of the Shamshabad diocese on October 9 last year.
With morethan 5 million followers, the Kerala-based church is the second largest Christian grouping in India. Major Archbishop Cardinal George Alencherry, the head of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, formally dedicated the diocese to the Vatican with the installation of Raphael Thattil as its first bishop. The enthronement ceremony was attended by two cardinals – including Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, the president of the Catholics Bishops Conference of India – senior Vatican representative Archbishop Cyril Vasil and Hyderabad Archbishop Thumma Bala, along with over a dozen archbishops and more than 40 bishops from across the country.
The Diocese of Shamshabad in Hyderabad is the 31st for the Kerala-based church and also the largest in the country with administrative control across 24 States, including the entire Eastern and North Eastern regions, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, four Union Territories and all those areas which are not governed by the 14 dioceses outside Kerala.
Syro-Malabar Church traces its origins to 52 AD and is believed to be founded directly by St Thomas the Apostle, is also the third largest under the Vatican, after the Latin Catholic Church and the Ukrainian Catholic Churches. Its members are financially, politically and numerically a powerful community in Kerala. This church also has four dioceses outside India in Australia, Britain, Canada and the US – and 14 other dioceses in the country.
Kerala: First boat-shaped church inaugurated, Udipi
Gerald Lobo, Bishop of the Udupi Diocese, along with Francis Serrao, Bishop of Shivamogga, and Robert Miranda, Bishop of Kalaburagi, inaugurated the church. Dr. Lobo blessed and sanctified the water that was used to bless the people and the structure of the church. The solemn inaugural mass was concelebrated by bishops and priests, with Dr. Lobo taking the role of chief celebrant.
In his homily, Dr. Serrao traced the history of building of the ‘House of God’ from the Old Testament. He emphasised the significance of the church and spoke about how it was closely associated with the lives of devotees. After the homily, the Litany of Saints was recited. Then Dr. Lobo anointed the main altar with Chrism oil and sanctified it while Dr. Miranda anointed the walls of the church at four main points. Dr. Lobo then recited the prayer of dedication of the church. He handed over the lighted candle to Fr. Alban D’Souza, parish priest of Stella Maris Church, who in turn lighted the candles on the newly blessed altar. Meanwhile, all the lights within the church were switched on and the solemn mass continued.
At the end, after the distribution of Holy Communion, the Tabernacle was blessed and sanctified and the ciborium containing the Holy Eucharist was placed reverently inside the Tabernacle. Later, a public felicitation function was held on the church premises.
Telangana : Waqf board struggling to locate funds
The Telangana State Waqf Board, the Muslim Endowments Panel is grapple with locating funds to the tune of Rs. 100 crore. The funds are compensation amount which the civic administration had given the Waqf Board after acquiring Waqf properties for work such as road widening and others.
Whenever road widening and other work are taken up and properties of Waqf institutions are affected, the money should be routed through the board. We have found out that some mutawallis have directly received the compensation amount of Rs. 100 crore over a period of about two decades, Telangana State Waqf Board Chairman Mohammed Saleem said speaking to the media. The board would now investigate who the recipients of these funds were and contemplate the course of action for recovery. “We will ask those who have taken the money to return it,” Mr. Saleem said.
Earlier in the day, the board members and GHMC officials led by Commissioner B. Janardhan Reddy met at Razzack Manzil to discuss the issue of Rs. 350 crore compensation the civic body owes the board. While Mr. Reddy did not comment on the issue and left early, Mr. Saleem said, “Of the Rs. 350 crore, the GHMC has to give the board around Rs. 215 crore directly. The other Rs. 100 crore has been paid to the mutawallis . We will sit with the GHMC and scrutinise the record of the properties.”
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