THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The capital is gearing up to host the annual Karkidaka Vavu Bali rituals to be held on Thursday with elaborate preparations under way at prime locations, including Thiruvalllam, Shankumugham and Papanasam.
Extensive arrangements are in place at the Thiruvallam Parasurama Temple — a prime venue for the rituals.
Every year over 50,000 people offer the ritual at Thiruvallam temple. Anticipating the influx of devotees, the temple authorities have made elaborate arrangements to ensure the smooth conduct of the ritual.
A total of nine bali mandapams have been set up at the temple so that around 3,500 people can perform the ritual simultaneously.
The ritual will begin at 2.30 am on Thursday and will continue till 2 pm. Temporary bridges have been set up to ensure smooth access to the bali mandapams at the temple.
An official of the Fire Department said that a scuba diving team will be stationed at Thiruvallam to enhance the safety of the devotees. “As many as 180 fire personnel will be deployed at all locations where the ritual is happening. Besides this civil defence volunteers will also be deployed for crowd management and emergency services,” said the official.
Preparations are in full swing at Shankumugham — one of the preferred locations for the ritual. Shankumugham ward councillor Seraphine Freddy said that fishing boats anchored along the shore have been shifted to make way for the smooth conduct of the rituals.
“Every year we make sure that the beach area is ready for hosting the ritual. Erosion is a major threat but many people prefer to offer the bali here and we have made all arrangements including temporary shades have been set up,” said Seraphine Freddy.
An official of the district administration said that all arrangements are in place for the event. “We have divided the district into eight zones and we have assigned nodal officers for every zone to ensure there is no issues,” the official added.