Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, will inaugurate the newly constructed service road linking Pampa-Triveni with the Njunangar banks at Pampa on the foothills of Sabarimala at a ceremonial function to be held at the Pampa Manalpuram on Saturday.
The Akhila Bharatha Ayyappa Seva Sanghom has constructed the new road as part of the Sabarimala Master Plan prepared by the Delhi-based Ecosmart India attached to IL & FS Limited.
The ABASS general secretary, N. Velayudhan Nair, told The Hindu that the Sanghom has constructed the service road was at a cost of Rs 1.5 crore in the service of the scores of Ayyappa devotees coming to Sabarimala from different parts of the country.
The 1200-metre long road will be used for transportation of goods in vehicles to the devaswom store rooms situated at Pampa with out causing inconvenience to the pilgrims at the Pampa Manalpuram.
Earlier, the movement of vehicles through the pilgrims’ path cutting across the Pampa Manalpuram has been causing much inconvenience to the pilgrims, especially during the rush days of the festival season. The High Power Committee for implementation of the master plan has decided to construct the service road in the first phase of the execution process and ABASS came forward to sponsor the road project, taking into consideration its importance in addressing the pilgrims’ problems at Sabarimala, says Mr Nair.
He said the new road could also be utilised for transporting physically ill persons as when needed during the rush days of the pilgrim season, besides using it an exit route in case of an emergency.
Mr Nair said the Devaswom Minister, V.S. Sivakumar, would inaugurate the meeting to be held as part of the dedication ceremony of the road on Saturday forenoon. Mr Thennala Balakrishna Pillai, ABASS national president, will preside over the function and Mr Nair himself would welcome the gathering.
ABASS vice-president, D. Vijayakumar, will introduce the dignitaries and Mr Mohan K.Nair, Sanghom treasurer, will present the report.
Anto Antony, MP; Raju Abraham, MLA; M. Rajagopalan Nair, Travancore Devaswom Board president; K. Cicily, K.V. Padmanabhan, both board members; P. Venugopal, District Collector and S. Jagadish, Special Commissioner appointed by Kerala High Court, will also address the function.
