The government has taken extra care to ensure that pilgrims will get all basic facilities at the Nilackal base camp for the annual pilgrimage season at Sabarimala that begins on November 17, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran has said.
The Minister was reviewing the arrangements being made by various departments and other stakeholders for the smooth conduct of the pilgrim season at a meeting at Pandalam on Tuesday.
He said directions had been given to make necessary arrangements to ensure water supply and other basic facilities at Nilackal.
Steps would be taken to provide shelter to not less than 10,000 people at Nilackal, he said.
Mr. Surendran said the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) launched a ₹6-crore project for supplying drinking water to Nilackal and Pampa. Public Works Department officials told the meeting that the department had awarded tenders for 123 works for repair and maintenance of roads so as to complete all the works by the first week of November.
Mr. Surendran said the government had constituted a special team headed by Principal Secretary of Public Works G. Kamala Vardhana Rao for restoration of the flood-ravaged Pampa Manalpuram. The Chief Secretary had been monitoring the restoration works awarded to Mumbai-based Tata Projects Limited. Tata Projects had undertaken works worth ₹21 crore at Pampa.
Mr. Surendran said the first-ever meeting convened by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan after his return from the US was to review the arrangements for the Sabarimala pilgrim season.
Green protocol
The Minister said the district administration and the Information and Public Relations Department would jointly launch awareness campaigns for the conduct of the pilgrimage in an eco-friendly manner. He said the administration would take necessary steps for compliance of the Green protocol at Sabarimala and surrounding areas.
Chittayam Gopakumar, MLA; A. Padmakumar, TDB president; K.P. Sankaradas and K. Raghavan, board members; P.B. Noohu, District Collector; T. Narayanan, District Police Chief; and N. Vasu, Devaswom Commissioner, spoke.
