Tirupati: The over 2000-year-old Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirupati grows richer by the year. The fixed deposits done by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has crossed Rs 12,000 crore mark. The TTD governs the hill shrine located at nearby Tirumala.
According to media report, the estimated annual interest from the various banks was about Rs 845 crore. The annual income of the temple this year was about Rs 31 billion with the devotee footfall of about 25 million from all over the world.
About 8.7 tonnes of pure gold and nearly 550 kg of gold jewellery set with stones have been offered by devotees in the temple Hundi. The gold jewellery would also be converted into pure gold sooner or later, a temple official has been quoted saying.
Of the total 8.7 tonnes of gold, 1,938 kg is with the Indian Overseas Bank as deposits and 5,387 kg with the State Bank of India, while 1,381 kg came back to the TTD treasury recently from the Punjab National Bank after the end of the deposit period.