Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD)- the biggest Hindu temples conglomerate in the world will soon establish a replica temple of Lord Balaji in Navi Mumbai and dedicate the temple to the devotees. The City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) has sent a proposal to the state government for the allotment of a plot in Ulwe node in Navi Mumbai.
The plot earmarked for the temple is currently being used as a casting yard for MTHL project by Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). CIDCO had allotted the plot to MMRDA on a leave and license agreement basis. And, at the request of CIDCO, MMRDA has approved the re-possession of the allotted land to CIDCO. The plot will be acquired by CIDCO in phases from March to September 2023.
Before deciding the plot at Ulwe in Navi Mumbai, Subba Reddy, President of TTD, Dharma Reddy, additional chief officer, TTD, Trustee of TTD Milind Narvekar, and Saurabh Bora also inspected the available plot. Later a meeting was held at Varsha in Mumbai and it was decided to allot the plot for the temple. Accordingly, the land in Ulwe Node, which is close to the upcoming international airport and has good connectivity with the cities around Navi Mumbai, has been identified for the temple.
According to senior CIDCO officials, Urban Development Minister Eknath Shinde, and Tourism Minister Aditya Thackeray instructed the planning agency to send the proposal to the state government for approval.
Over the years, it has been observed that many devotees could visit Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh to worship Lord Venkateswara Balaji due to various reasons For such devotees in Maharashtra and especially in Mumbai, the TTD has been repeatedly requesting the state government to provide a land to build a temple of Lord Venkateswara.
In this connection, Subba Reddy, president of TTD has written a letter on February 27, 2022 to the state government requesting approval for construction of a temple near Navi Mumbai International Airport, which is constructed in Navi Mumbai. Following which, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had instructed CIDCO to initiate a process to allot land.
