Falling Mercury Levels Trouble Tirumala Devotees Amid Heavy Rush

The temperature dropped to 18 degrees Celsius between 2.30am and 5.30am on Sunday.

Weather forecasts indicate that minimum temperatures are likely to remain between 17 and 18 degrees Celsius over the next three days, while daytime temperatures are expected to range from 23 to 26 degrees Celsius. High humidity and cloudy conditions have added to the discomfort during the early hours.

Several pilgrims without accommodation were seen using blankets and shawls to protect themselves from the cold near the temple and other public places. Families with children and elderly people found it difficult to spend the night outdoors.

The accommodation shortage was evident at the central reception office, where the daily room quota had been exhausted, leaving several pilgrims waiting for rooms.

The heavy rush also put pressure on darshan arrangements. All compartments in the Vaikuntam queue complexes were occupied on Sunday morning, with the queue extending outside towards Silathoranam. The waiting time for Sarva Darshan without slotted tokens was estimated at 18 hours.

A total of 83,670 pilgrims had darshan of Lord Venkateswara on Saturday. The hundi collections stood at ₹4.02 crore, while Annaprasadam was served to 2.75 lakh devotees. TTD recorded 35,785 tonsure and distributed 4.32 lakh laddus.

With temperatures expected to remain low until Wednesday, pilgrims without accommodation may continue to face difficulties during the night and early morning. TTD officials appealed to pilgrims to use the available pilgrim amenities complexes, free lockers and bathing facilities.

They also asked devotees who had completed darshan to vacate their allotted rooms and lockers to make them available to incoming pilgrims.