New Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday virtually inaugurated the Tirupati Balaji Temple, which is located amidst the picturesque Shivalik forests in the Majeen area in Jammu and Kashmir. The temple today opened its doors for the devotees.
Union Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy, Minister of State Jitendra Singh, and Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha were physically present at the inauguration event.
The temple has been built on 62 acres of land with approx cost of Rs 25 crores and construction work was completed in a span of two years.
The Tirupati Balaji Temple is one of the largest temples in the Jammu region and is expected to boost religious and pilgrimage tourism in the UT. It is located approximately 10 kilometers from Jammu and about 40 kilometers from Katra.
Earlier in the day, a video of the temple was shared by news agency ANI.
During the temple's inauguration ceremony, Jyotiraditya Scindia, the Union Minister of Tourism, stated that the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam is not only constructing temples dedicated to Lord Tirupati Balaji across the country but also preventing instances of religious conversions happening nationwide.
The Jammu temple will be the sixth Balaji temple constructed outside Andhra Pradesh, with the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) having previously built temples in Hyderabad, Chennai, Kanyakumari, Delhi and Bhubaneswar.
TTD Chairman YV Subba Reddy had earlier said, “We have almost completed the construction of the temple and it will be inaugurated on June 8 and will be thrown open for the devotees free of cost. The rituals will start from June 3.”
Reddy, who inspected the temple in Jammu, had said, “Whatever system and practice being followed in Tirumala, will be followed here as well.” The TTD has built Tirupati Balaji Temple at a holy place. It falls on the route between Jammu and Katra, where Mata Vaishno Devi temple is located, Reddy said.