Cash flushed with Rs 4 crore junked notes post demonetization, Balaji temple seeks RBI advice

The famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara in Tirumala is caught in a piquant situation as it has received over Rs 4 crore in demonetized 500 and 1,000 rupee notes from devotees in its 'hundi' in the last two months, past the deadline for their exchange.

The temple administration has written to the government and the Reserve Bank of India on the fate of the accumulated notes and was awaiting a response, a top official said today.

Thousands of devotees thronging the cash-rich temple from various parts of the country continued to offer the junked currency in the hundi along with valid notes even after the deadline for exchange of demonetized notes expired on December 30.

More than Rs 4 crore in demonetized currency had been offered in the hundi, Executive Officer of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), which administers the ancient shrine, D Sambasiva Rao said.

"We have already written to the RBI and Government of India about the demonetized notes offered by devotees as fulfillment of their vows and are awaiting a reply," he told