Naidu okays filling of 137 posts in Endowments dept
Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu during a review meeting on Endowments Department at Secretariat on Tuesday
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday has approved the filling up of 137 vacant posts in the Endowments Department, including key positions like Deputy Commissioners and Grade 1 & 3 Executive Officers.
Vijayawada: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday has approved the filling up of 137 vacant posts in the Endowments Department, including key positions like Deputy Commissioners and Grade 1 & 3 Executive Officers. He directed officials to recruit for these five categories through direct recruitment including 6 Deputy Commissioners, 5 Assistant Commissioners, 6 Grade-1 EOs, 104 Grade-3 EOs, and 16 Junior Assistants. He also approved filling nearly 200 vacancies for Vedic staff with qualified candidates. Naidu conducted a review meeting on Endowments Department at Secretariat.
There are 23 major temples in the State, but daily Annadanam is currently offered in only seven — including Srisailam, Srikalahasti, Kanipakam, Vijayawada Durga Temple, Annavaram, Dwaraka Tirumala, and Simhachalam. He directed that the scheme be extended to the remaining 16 temples as well.
He instructed officials to prepare a phased development plan for all temples, beginning with master plans for 23 major temples in the first phase. These plans must comply with Agama Shastra and position temples as engines of growth for temple tourism. He proposed forming a committee to devise a comprehensive leasing policy to protect temple lands and generate revenue through commercial leasing.
He proposed setting up a “Balaji Temple Construction Fund” to build one new temple per constituency. “Temples must be built and maintained; daily rituals should be ensured through active temple committees.
He instructed that CCTV systems be installed in all 24,538 notified temples under the 6C category.
He noted that Srisailam is the only pilgrimage site in the country that houses both a Dwadasha Jyotirlinga and one of the Ashtadasha Shakti Peethas. He said it should be developed on par with Tirumala-Tirupati. Due to limited temple land availability in Srisailam, he advised a strategic and planned approach.
Temples in the State generate more than Rs1,300 crore annually, with Rs850 crore coming from the top seven temples alone. Temples earning over Rs5 lakh contribute 9% of their income to the Common Good Fund (CGF). For FY 2024-25, CGF collections stood at Rs149 crore, with Rs111 crore being used for 48 development projects across various temples. Of the total 25,028 notified temples. There are 169 are in the 6A category (earning over Rs50 lakh), 321 in the 6B category (earning Rs15–50 lakh), and 24,538 in the 6C category (earning under Rs15 lakh).
