HYDERABAD, INDIA, December 14, 2005: Temple priests from all parts of the State will undertake a 48-hour “sarpa digbandhanam” (laying siege, a kind of “sit in”) of the endowments department officer in the city on January 20 and 21, demanding amendment to the AP Endowments Act to take more than 32,000 temples out of the department’s purview. A delegation of archakas led by president T. Ramacharyulu, vice-president M.V. Soundara Rajan met Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy (a Protestant Christian0 and submitted a memorandum to this effect. Mr. Soundara Rajan said out of the total 34,000 temples in the State, nearly 32,000 temples had income with less than $11,300 per annum. The government had earlier issued a government order removing 32,098 temples with income less than $1,1300 from the purview of endowments department. The Archaka Samakhya has been demanding that the income ceiling be enhanced to $11,300, so that another 1,300 temples can be taken out of the department’s purview.
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