Second ghat road in Tirumala closed for traffic as boulders fall

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The second ghat road leading to the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala has been indefinitely closed to vehicular traffic after massive boulders fell on the stretch following rain-triggered landslides.

The landslip took place early on Wednesday, a temple official said adding a group of about 20 devotees on a bus plying uphill had a miraculous escape as the driver swiftly brought the vehicle to a halt on noticing rocks rolling down the hills.

The dislodged rocks, some car-sized, have rolled down causing enormous damage to the road in many places and its protection railings at a height of 1000 feet and 800 feet respectively on 20 km long extremely curled serpentine road.

Recently, Tirumala had witnessed heavy downpour and after a gap of three days the hills again experienced moderate rain on Tuesday night, which have resulted in mudslides.

A team of experts from IIT in New Delhi is expected to visit the damage sites on the road soon the official said adding that TTD Board Chairman YV Subba Reddy also visited the site. Now, vehicles carrying pilgrims, including APSRTC buses are being permitted to ply on the old ghat road, amid tight precautionary measures. The devotees who were unable to visit the hills after purchasing darshan tickets online can avail darshan of the Lord on the hills on any day within 6 months.