Tirupati: While Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD)–managed temples across the country witnessed an unprecedented surge in devotees on Vaikunta Ekadasi in 2025, the world-famous Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple at Tirumala stood out for an uncomfortable reason: it drew fewer pilgrims than expected on one of the most sacred days in the Vaishnavite calendar, largely due to TTD’s self-imposed restrictions on darshan access.

Official data reveal a striking contrast. On December 30, nearly 12.5 lakh devotees thronged about six dozen TTD-run temples outside Tirumala, marking a steep 50 per cent rise over last year’s Vaikunta Ekadasi footfall of 8.9 lakh. The spike was visible across metros and smaller pilgrimage centres alike, underlining a growing trend of devotees opting for local TTD temples amid access curbs at the hill shrine.

Against this backdrop, Tirumala’s numbers appeared unusually modest. Only around 67,000 devotees had darshan at the hill temple on Vaikunta Ekadasi—well below the traditional rush associated with the occasion and far lower than what the shrine’s vast infrastructure is capable of handling.

Among the outside temples, the SV temple in Bengaluru recorded the highest turnout with 64,173 devotees, up from 54,532 last year—almost matching Tirumala’s figure. Close behind was the Sri Venkateswara temple at T Nagar, Chennai, which drew 59,896 pilgrims, nearly double last year’s turnout.

In Andhra Pradesh, Sri Padmavathi Ammavari temple at Tiruchanoor saw footfall rise to 33,973 from 23,217 last year, while Appalayagunta registered nearly double the crowd with 30,120 devotees. Kodandarama Swamy temple at Vontimitta reported a dramatic surge, attracting 51,219 pilgrims, a sharp jump from 18,221 last year. SV temple at Rushikonda, Visakhapatnam, also crossed the 51,000 mark.

Hyderabad’s Himayat Nagar and Jubilee Hills temples reported heavy crowds as well, with 58,743 and 54,243 devotees respectively. Even smaller TTD temples in Devuni Kadapa, Srinivasa Mangapuram, Amaravati, Kanyakumari and New Delhi recorded attendance running into tens of thousands.

While TTD officials expressed satisfaction over the overall turnout—about 11.7 lakh devotees at outside temples—the comparatively low footfall at Tirumala has triggered serious internal discussions. This is especially so given that the hill shrine commands far superior manpower, infrastructure and crowd-management capabilities than many temples that handled equal or larger numbers smoothly.

The criticism has largely centred on the e-dip darshan system and the decision to cap tokens at a significantly lower number on Vaikunta Ekadasi. Senior TTD watchers point out that the move runs counter to repeated directions from Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who has consistently stressed the need to enhance tourism and pilgrimage footfall.

A senior citizen, who failed to secure a darshan slot on the auspicious day, questioned the logic behind the restrictions. “On Saturday, Tirumala easily accommodated over 88,000 pilgrims. Then why were only around 65,000 allowed on Vaikunta Ekadasi, the most important day of the year? Further, is it necessary to hone computer literacy skills to visit Tirumala temple on auspicious days to be able to get darshan tickets?”, he asked.

By conservative estimates, the cap denied darshan to at least 20,000 devotees—a shortfall many believe could have been avoided with better planning and fuller utilisation of Tirumala’s resources without keeping devotees away from the sanctum this year.