TTD temple in Mumbai: Raymond's Singhania says it will be built on priority basis

The chairman and managing director of the Raymond Group, Gautam Hari Singhania, told the media on Wednesday (May 10) that the foundation for a new temple of Lord Venkateswara in Mumbai would be laid before the end of June. He said that the construction of the TTD temple would receive priority and they would endeavour to complete it as soon as possible.

The Raymond Group had volunteered to construct the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) temple in Mumbai.

Singhania also said that he had agreed to nurture the TTD high school at Tirumala. He was happy over the excellent results the school had achieved, and had informed the TTD that he was willing to adopt other educational institutions of theirs in the future. Before addressing the media, Singhania had offered prayers inside the hill temple.

Maharashtra govt allotted 10 acres in Navi Mumbai to TTD for temple

In April 2022, the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) allotted 10 acres of land in sector 12 in the Ulwe node of Navi Mumbai for TTD to build the temple.

TTD had been requesting the Maharashtra government for land to construct a temple in Mumbai for the devotees of Lord Venkateswara Balaji in Mumbai and Maharashtra who could not visit the temple in Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh.

The plot of land that has been allotted for the temple was used as a casting yard for the MTHL project by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). CIDCO had given the land to MMRDA on a leave and license agreement basis.

Also read: Tirupati Tirumala temple: Devotees wait for 36 hours for darshan

On CIDCO’s request, the development authority agreed to return the land to CIDCO.

The land in Ulwe node is close to the upcoming international airport in Navi Mumbai, and was inspected by the office bearers of TTD, who found it ideal for the temple.

Eknath Shinde, then Urban Development Minister, and Aaditya Thackeray, then Tourism Minister, had instructed CIDCO to send a proposal to the state government. Subba Reddy, president of TTD, wrote a letter in February 2022 to the state government requesting approval for the construction of the temple on the concerned plot of land in Navi Mumbai.

Uddhav Thackeray, then Chief Minister, gave instructions to CIDCO to begin the process to allot the land to TTD for the temple.

(With agency inputs)