Vijayawada, May 3: The authorities of Tirupati Balaji temple, located in Tirumala town of Andhra Pradesh, were forced to oust 1,300 contractual workers amid the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown. The ouster was necessitated as the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) board was unable to renew the contract with the manpower agency which supplied the labourers. No Ram Temple Activity in Ayodhya Till Lockdown is Lifted, Says VHP.

The ousted workers were involved in sanitation and cleaning duties. Since the temple was closed from March 20, they were effectively left with no work as neither the guest houses were occupied nor any sanitation work was required.

The TTD Board, which manages the hilltop shrine of of Lord Venkateswara, is also the richest temple body in the country. It was expected to keep the workers employed as they are unlikely to find any other source of employment amid the ongoing lockdown.

YV Subba Reddy, the chairperson of temple trust, claimed that the contract with the manpower agency could not be renewed due to the lockdown which is still in effect. The contract expired on April 30, which forced the temple authorities to ask the sanitation staff to vacate the premises by May 1.

"Normally, fresh tenders would have been called by now for awarding of the contract to the agency which bids the lowest amount for manpower supply. Because of the lockdown, the TTD trust board could not meet and finalise the tender," HT quoted TTD official spokesman T Ravi.

The nationwide lockdown was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from March 25, and renewed from April 14 for another three weeks. Ahead of the expiry of current phase of lockdown on May 3, the Home Ministry issued an order to extend the restrictions till May 17. While certain relaxations have been announced, all religious places would remain closed, the MHA clarified.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 03, 2020 08:13 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).