Minimise Manpower, Switch To AI In Parakamani: HC

In the wake of the Parakamani theft, the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Friday issued a slew of directions to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD).

Taking serious note of the issue, the court directed the TTD to minimise human intervention in the counting process and to adopt artificial intelligence and state-of-the-art technology to enhance transparency and accuracy.

The Court ordered the TTD to implement permanent measures immediately to curb theft and suggested that the process could be carried out in two phases.

It directed the TTD to submit a report with information on security arrangements during the counting like hundi sealing, and transportation of the hundis. Apart from categorising the donations and gifts given to the Lord, the court suggested that AI should be effectively used to segregate foreign currency and valuable metals during counting.

The court directed the TTD to submit a comprehensive draft outlining the proposed reforms taken up to check theft during counting, within eight weeks.

In April 2023, CV Ravi Kumar, an employee of TTD working at the Parakamani, was identified to have stolen approximately $920 in coins and currency notes, in a security breach incident. Earlier this month, Ravi Kumar released a selfie video claiming that never bribed anyone to donate his properties to the TTD after his Parakamani theft was exposed.