Mumbai, Apr 30 (IANS): Maharashtra Tourism Minister Aaditya Thackeray on Saturday handed over a letter of allotment of land to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) to construct a Lord Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Navi Mumbai, the first in western India, an official said.

Thackeray visited and took 'darshan' at the famed temple, placed the allotment letter before the idol and then handed it over to the TTD CEO Dharma Reddy.

Present on the auspicious occasion were TTD Member Milind Narvekar, Yuva Sena leaders Rahul Kanal and Suraj Chavan, plus other top officials of the Andhra Pradesh-based temple trust.

TTD President Subba Reddy has expressed his happiness at the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government's decision to allot the plot of land in Navi Mumbai for the temple which will benefit millions of devotees of Lord Balaji in Maharashtra and adjoining west Indian states.

Till date, the TTD has already constructed temples in Hyderabad, Chennai, Kanyakumari, Bengaluru, Visakhapatnam, Bhubaneswar, Jammu, New Delhi, Kurukshetra and Rishikesh, and the one to come up Navi Mumbai will be its first in western India.

Following a request from the TTD in February 2022, the state Cabinet presided over by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray approved the allotment of a 10-acres plot at Ulwe, near the upcoming Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, for building a replica of the Tirupati Temple, last fortnight.

The TTD and Maharashtra government expect that the new temple here - construction for which is likely to begin next year - will become the focal point of attraction for devotees, domestic and international tourists, help develop the region and generate employment for many.

Located on 7th peak of the Tirumala Hills, which are around 850-metres tall, the much-revered Tirupati Temple attracts an average of three-four crore devotees annually.

It also ranks as the richest temple in the world in terms of revenues - around Rs 3,000 crore per year - collected from peoples' offerings and donations.