Wipro and TCS are among the IT companies vying for the Sri Seva Project of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD). Currently TTD offers four main e-services such as e-seva, e-accommodation, e-sudarshanam and e-hundi to the devotees. The Sri Seva project would help the administration in offering services like providing rooms, 'laddus' as well as in tonsuring.

There are as many as 48 departments which need to be automated and brought under one platform for better services to pilgrims. "Wipro, TCS and Infinite Computer Solutions have been shortlisted from the technical bids. Next step will be going for financial bids. By December, we want to implement the project," sources said. The process of technical bids for the Sri Seva project are expected to be completed in a span of ten days and the TTD may go for financial bids thereafter, they said.

The project is estimated to cost between Rs 30 crore to Rs 35 crore, with an additional maintenance cost of around Rs 12 crore every year in the first phase. The phenomenal growth in the number of pilgrims visiting Tirumala has put constant pressure on all the systems, most of which are based on manual operations. According to TTD, around 50,000 devotees visit Lord Balaji's main temple in Tirumala every day and on holidays and festivals, the figure crosses one lakh.