Pleas for ‘No-Fly’ zone over Tirumala get louder, rising air traffic raises concerns

Requests to declare Tirumala a no-fly zone have been increasing daily, as devotees are particularly upset by the rising air traffic over the Ananda Nilayanam, the sanctum sanctorum of the Srivari temple in Tirumala.

Devotees and government authorities alike have emphasized that aircraft flying over the sacred temple violates the Agama Shastras.

Despite repeated appeals to establish Tirumala as a no-fly zone, no action has been taken so far.

Earlier this month, BR Naidu, Chairman of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD)—the trust that manages the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple—wrote to Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, requesting that Tirumala be declared a no-fly zone.

In response to the TTD chief’s plea, Ram Mohan Naidu explained that there is no provision to declare specific areas as no-fly zones. He pointed out that similar requests have been made for other religious and important sites, and that authorities are in discussions with air navigation and traffic controllers to explore alternative flight routes.

The debate over declaring Tirumala a no-fly zone is not new. Similar requests were made to the Centre during the tenure of N Kiran Kumar Reddy as Chief Minister. During his previous term, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, at the request of the then TTD Chairman, had written to Ashok Kumar Gajapathi, the Civil Aviation Minister at the time, asking for Tirumala to be designated as a no-fly zone.

However, the Airports Authority of India rejected the proposal, stating clearly that declaring pilgrim sites as no-fly zones was not feasible. The Authority emphasized that only security-sensitive locations, such as Rashtrapati Bhavan and nuclear facilities, are designated no-fly zones.

The Civil Aviation Ministry also pointed out that declaring Tirumala a no-fly zone could cause additional challenges, as it is already difficult for flights to take off and land at Renigunta due to the hilly terrain. “Since Renigunta is being developed into an international airport, making Tirumala a no-fly zone would not be practical,” the officials had noted.

What the Agama Shastras Say

The Agama Shastras are ancient scriptures that govern temple rituals and architecture. According to these texts, no object, including aircraft, should pass over the sacred space, as it would disrupt the spiritual connection between the deity and the devotees. The scriptures also state that no sounds, other than those of bells, drums, and other musical instruments, should be heard on the Tirumala hill shrine.