Hyderabad: Devotees embarking on their trek to the hill shrine of Tirumala from Tirupati town are now being given sturdy lathis. Guess why? These wooden sticks are for staving off leopard attacks.
The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) came up with the baton idea after the increasing sightings of leopards on the 11 km footpath passing through a hilly, jungle terrain as well as two attacks on children, the second one killing a six-year-old girl last month.
“Given the fright the leopard attacks have created, a lathi in hand, in addition to moving in groups, will offer confidence to the devotees. If at all there is an encounter with a wild beast, they can collectively react, and scare it away,” D.N. Kishore, chief vigilance and security officer, TTD told ThePrint.
The TTD has procured 10,000 lathis, which are being given to devotees at the Alipiri Padala Mandapam and taken back when they reach Sri Narasimha Swami temple. These will be then handed over to devotees walking down on a rotation basis.
Further, devotees with children below 12 years age are now prohibited on the trek, after 2 PM. Two-wheelers movement is also stopped on the up and down Ghat Roads from 6 PM to 6 AM, officials said.
Since the leopard attack on a three-year-old boy in June, the Andhra Pradesh forest department has set up traps near to the stepped walkway and till now captured five leopards, the latest on Wednesday night.
Forest officials have sent the samples for DNA analysis to confirm if the leopards caught include the one which mauled the girl on 11 August. They also found that some more wild felines are roaming in the thick green cover.
The Tirumala temple is located amidst the rich Seshachalam forest, which is also famous for Red Sanders trees. The plot of blockbuster Allu Arjun starrer movie ‘Pushpa’ is centered in Seshachalam forest.
While the stepped walkway distance from Alipiri entrance point (Tirupati) to Tirumala is 11 km, the leopard attack prone zone stretches for about three km midway, till the Narasimha Swamy temple. It takes about two to two and half hours to cover the entire distance, for a fit healthy adult.
TTD chairman Bhumana Karunakar Reddy began the distribution of the lathis to the pilgrims walking to Tirumala on foot, Wednesday evening.
“In the old times, pilgrims used to carry sticks while crossing dense woods as a protective measure against bandits and to scare off wild beasts. The provision is not to engage in a fight with the wild animals,” Bhumana told reporters, in response to trolling on social media.
Since the attacks, pilgrims are being sent in large groups along with security guards and police personnel stationed at short distances. The forest department has also deployed 100 staff at the wild animal-prone spots along the route. In addition to the constant relay on public address systems, devotees are also asked to chant the ‘Govinda namam’ loudly to keep the wild animals like leopards and bears away.
About 500 trap cameras were installed to identify the movement of wild animals. They are being driven into deep forests, officials said, adding they have also banned the sale of fruits along the walkway as several devotees offer them to deers and monkeys, drawing the carnivores to approach the walkway for prey.
Operation Chirutha to trap the leopards, along with all other safety measures, will be implemented all-round the year, Bhumana said.
As the walkway is in a reserve forest, TTD officials have sent a proposal, along with designs, to the Wildlife Institute of India and the Union forest ministry, for installing steel fencing along the Alipiri footpath route.
The refurbished stepped walkway, with pilgrim amenities like resting spots, toilets, rooftop shelters, completed with a Rs 25 crore donation from Reliance Industries, was inaugurated in October 2021.
On average daily, about 20,000 pilgrims, mostly those who come to fulfil their vows to Lord Venkateshwara, take the well-laid stone footpaths, known as sopanamargas, leading to Tirumala. Srivari Mettu, the other steeper footpath, is a few km away.
“The number of pilgrims walking to Tirumala doubles to 40,000 on festive occasions. These devotees are given free tokens for Divyadarshanam, which takes less time than the Sarvadarshanam queue at the temple. Their luggage is also transported free,” a senior TTD official told ThePrint.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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