It’s slow progress for Sabarimala pilgrims

Sabarimala-bound vehicles detained for hours as Ayyappa temple witnesses unprecedented rush

Long queue: Pilgrims waiting on the Ayyappa temple premises at Sabarimala on Tuesday

With hardly three days left for the culmination of the 41-day Mandalam pilgrim season, Sabarimala witnessed heavy rush of pilgrims on Tuesday.

However, lack of co-ordination and proper communication between the police special officers at Pampa, Nilackal, and the Sannidhanam and the district administration have led to hardships to the pilgrims. Vehicles, including Sabarimala special services of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation, carrying pilgrims were detained for hours together at Erumeli, Ponkunnam, Pathanamthitta, Pathanapuram, Chengannur and Nilackal from Monday evening.

Officials resorted to detaining the vehicles in the name of avoiding congestion at Sabarimala following unconfirmed reports of unprecedented rush at the temple.

Pilgrims were put to much hardship as their vehicles were denied permission to proceed to Pampa and they have even staged protests against the official decision at Nilackal on Monday night.

The vehicles that reached Nilackal by 10 a.m. on Monday were permitted to Pampa only after 10 p.m. And many pilgrims have even proceeded to Pampa by foot all the way from Nilackal, after a long wait at the Nilackal base camp on Monday night.

According to an official statement issued here on Tuesday, an average of 75,000 pilgrims visit Sabarimala on a daily basis ever since the beginning of the annual pilgrim season in mid-November.

Rise in inflow likely

The pilgrim inflow is likely to increase in the last lap of the Mandalam season.

Official records say that as many as 25 lakh pilgrims have visited Sabarimala so far during the ongoing Mandalam pilgrim season.