The State Cabinet is expected to devote a fair share of time during its meeting on Thursday to streamlining pilgrim movement to and from the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple to avert tragedies such as the one that struck late on Friday evening at Pulmedu, 8 km from the temple, claiming 102 lives.
Additional Chief Secretary K. Jayakumar, in charge of Devaswom, will brief the Cabinet about the circumstances that led to the stampede at Pulmedu and outline ways to prevent recurrence of such accidents not just in the Pulmedu area, but also at various main access points to the temple and the exit areas.
Mr. Jayakumar, who has over the last few years done much to streamline the management of the pilgrim season at Sabarimala, is expected to present to the Cabinet some concrete options that will provide both short-term and long-term solutions to the challenges arising from the ever-increasing flow of pilgrims to the holy hillock.
Two main impediments to streamlining pilgrim movement in the temple precincts are the limited carrying capacity of the area and the short span of time within which the inward and outward flow of pilgrims takes place.
Proposals such as stretching the pilgrim season to tackle the time factor may have to wait. Therefore, the proposals to be presented to the Cabinet would have more to do with the control of pilgrim flow in both directions.
One major proposal is to stop as many vehicles as possible at Nilackal, instead of Pampa, and ferry the pilgrims free of cost to Pampa in batches.
This will help ease the crowd at Pampa. From Pampa, the pilgrims' movement has to be calibrated to ensure some parity in the numbers that move up and those coming down after darshan.
Secondly, the Valiyanadapanthal, where the pilgrims arrive from Saramkuthi, will be enlarged and linked to the Thirumuttom close to the ‘aazhi' with a large canopy. The ‘panthal' is currently being used partially for movement of tractors and partially to enable the pilgrims to take rest.
Double-storey facility
Once the Thirumuttom is also brought under cover, there will be a double-storey facility for pilgrims to stay just before they ascend the holy 18 steps leading to the sanctum sanctorum. An estimated 60,000 sq ft additional area becomes available for the purpose.
The third proposal is to streamline the exit from the sanctum after the darshan. At present, a large number of devotees return to the Thirumuttom on their homeward journey for collecting the ‘prasadam,' resulting in crowding in the area. The proposal is to have an overbridge that links the rear of the sanctum with Chandranandan Road.
‘Prasadam' counters
Connected to this is the proposal to shift the present ‘prasadam' counters from the forecourt to the little valley linking the main sanctum and the temple of Malikappurathamma. The location and condition of the present ‘prasadam' kitchen itself is a cause of great worry from the safety angle. If a multi-storey building could be built in the little valley with the ‘prasadam' preparation taking place at the lower levels and the distribution happening at the upper level, both the safety and crowding aspects could be addressed. A loop from the main over bridge could take the pilgrims who wish to purchase prasadam to the proposed multi-storey building. They can then return to the overbridge to reach Chandranandan Road.
An additional proposal is to have a ropeway from Pampa to the Sannidhanam. The proposal has been pending for long. This can be executed in a year at a cost of Rs.12 crore either through sponsors or getting banks to finance it.
