TTD considers facial recognition technology to check theft of worshipers by middlemen

In order to ensure transparency in booking of darshan tickets and accommodation and to curb the menace of middlemen, the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has decided to launch several measures in the interest of pilgrims visiting the Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirumala.

The temple board is considering introducing facial recognition and integrating Aadhaar numbers for further authentication and strict validation of the identity of devotees.

The TTD IT department, under the leadership of Managing Director J. Syamala Rao, conducted a thorough analysis of data of previous years relating to online and offline bookings of darshan tickets and accommodation. The data revealed widespread exploitation of devotees by middlemen.

It was found that 110 rooms were booked with the same mobile number in the current booking category in Tirumala, besides 807 accommodation bookings with the same mobile number and 926 online bookings on a single email ID.

TTD IT officials also identified 1,279 draw entries using the same mobile number in a year, besides 48 draw entries on a single email ID during the same period.

In order to prevent corrupt practices and bring more transparency in the system, the TTD has blocked mobile numbers, email IDs and identity proofs that were used in illegal mass bookings.