The Andhra Pradesh Cabinet has approved relocating the Oberoi Group’s Mumtaz Hotel project from Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) lands to Tirupati rural, following strong opposition from devotees and religious leaders.
Initially allotted 20 acres near Tirumala under the previous YSRCP government, the Oberoi Group will now receive 38 acres in Peruru village, Tirupati rural mandal, in exchange for the controversial site near the sacred Alipiri Srivari Padalu.
The land in Peruru was originally given in 2012 to Vaishnavi Infra for a “Temples of India” theme park. In 2021, 20 acres of it were re-allotted for the Oberoi resort. However, mounting protests—including hunger strikes by sadhus and priests—prompted Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to cancel all related tenders earlier this year.
“There will be no privatisation of TTD lands,” Naidu affirmed, criticising the previous administration for approving such sensitive projects near sacred sites. Despite the Oberoi Group offering to serve only vegetarian food at the resort, the government insisted on moving the project entirely out of TTD premises. The formal land exchange has now been authorised by the Cabinet.
source : INDIA TODAY
