Pilgrims waiting for darshan at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple on Saturday. | Photo Courtesy: Leju Kamal
In an effort to manage the influx of devotees to Sabarimala during Mandala Puja, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has reduced the daily cap on virtual lines and spot bookings.
Under the latest arrangement, 50,000 pilgrims will be allowed to enter through a virtual queue on December 25, coinciding with the arrival of the Tanka Angi procession at Sabarimala. An additional 10,000 slots will be opened the day after Mandla Puja, taking the total slots to 60,000. Spot booking entries, meanwhile, will be limited to 5,000 on both days.
Official sources said similar restrictions had been planned in the previous days for Makarvilakku celebrations on January 14. A final announcement about these arrangements will be made later.
There has been a significant increase in the arrival of pilgrims at the hill pilgrimage site for the past few days. It is estimated that 96,853 devotees entered Sannidhanam on Friday, 22,000 through spot booking. The temple was crowded even on Saturday, 31 thousand 507 pilgrims visited the temple till 8 am, of which 7 thousand 718 people entered the temple.
Till December 20, a total of 27.04 lakh devotees visited Sabarimala, compared to 22.54 lakh during the same period last year.
Emergency Medical Center
Keeping in view the increasing numbers, the authorities have decided to set up an additional emergency medical center on Chandranandan Road between Marakutam and Sannidhanam. The TDB has been tasked with identifying a suitable location for the center to cater to the growing number of pilgrims.
The duty magistrate has been directed to supervise the operation of 300 stretcher units at the shrine while the Sannidhanam station house officer has been directed to secure the buildings and prevent unsafe encroachment.
Further, restrictions will be implemented at the Nadapanthal stage to address congestion. The move follows complaints that several announcements made at Sannidhanam could not be heard due to crowding and noise levels.
published – Dec 21, 2024 08:23 pm IST