A record-breaking 1,07,260 devotees have made bookings for darshan on Monday at Sabarimala. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is scheduled to chair a meeting today to discuss security arrangements needed for controlling the crowd.
Thiruvananthapuram,UPDATED: Dec 12, 2022 11:08 IST
Over one lakh devotees made booking for darshan in Sabirama on Monday. (File photo)
By Shibimol KG: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will chair a meeting on Monday afternoon to discuss the arrangements needed for controlling the crowd in Sabarimala temple. Meanwhile, there has been a record-breaking booking for darshan on Monday. Additional arrangements are being made to manage the crowd since around 1,07,260 devotees have made bookings for darshan on Monday at Sabarimala.
This is the highest booking of this season. This is the second time in this season that bookings have crossed the one lakh mark. In view of the increase in the number of Sabarimala pilgrims, police have made special arrangements to control the rush.
Devotees will be escorted from Pampa to Sannidhanam in a controlled and segmented manner.
HC SUGGESTS EXTENDING DARSHAN TIME
Meanwhile, the Kerala High Court, in a special sitting on Sunday, December 11 suggested extending the worship time for devotees on busy days. The court also directed the police and district collector to take measures to control the crowd.
The HC further said that the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), in consultation with the tantri of Sabarimala, could consider keeping the sanctum sanctorum open for another 30 minutes or an hour.
An increase in footfall has resulted in crowd management and traffic control issues. Nearly one lakh bookings were made through the virtual queue system on Saturday and approximately 90,000 devotees turned up, noted the HC. A few policemen who were on duty also sustained injuries due to snags in crowd management, stated the HC.
In light of these incidents and the huge crowd, a bench of Justices Anil K Narendran and PG Ajithkumar directed the district collector and the district police chief of Pathanamthitta to evolve a crowd management plan when the expected footfall was above 75,000 per day.
MANAGING VEHICULAR TRAFFIC
With regards to managing vehicular traffic, the court directed the district police chief to arrange patrolling on motorcycles when vehicle movement is blocked for long periods. “In case the movement of vehicles is blocked for a considerably long period, the Travancore Devaswom Board shall make the necessary arrangements for providing chukkuvellam (water) and biscuits to pilgrims in such vehicles,” it said.
It further directed that when parking grounds at Nilakkal in Pathanamthitta were full, entry of vehicles had to be regulated appropriately by police. “The restrictions imposed on the parking of vehicles at Nilakkal parking grounds shall be made known to the pilgrims, through the public address systems at edathavalams,” the bench said. Edathavalams are halting points for pilgrims. The TDB was also directed to ensure that the parking contractor engages sufficient staff to ensure proper parking of vehicles.
The 41-day Mandala puja festival will conclude on December 27. After that, the temple will be opened again on December 30 for the Makaravilakku pilgrimage, which will end on January 14, 2023. The shrine will be closed on January 20, 2023, concluding the pilgrimage season.
(With inputs from PTI)
