THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: For the pongala aspirants of Amboori belt — located on the other side of the Karippayar in the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram — it was a special occasion this time, thanks to the recently inaugurated 53-m-long Kumbichal Kadavu bridge connecting the mainland to the tribal settlements or ‘ooru’ of the area. The bridge, built with a Rs 24 crore and Rs 71 lakh KIIFB fund, is said to be the longest-ever built across a river in Kerala.
“We had to take the ferry to cross over even to buy our daily supplies. Children faced the brunt most, as even those as young as six years had to be put in a hostel to avoid the travel. Now, with the bridge, travel has become easy,” says Seethalakshmi V, an ASHA worker from Kunnathumala.
Pongala goers also had to face hardships while on transit to the temple premises before the bridge came into existence, says Jijimol, a resident of Thodumala. “I have been offering pongala ever since I was a kid. In our settlements, this is a legacy festival, with our grandmothers and even her seniors participating braving all sorts of difficulties,” she says.
The pongala then meant travel for over two days carrying the paraphernalia, and then crossing the river on a ferry to reach mainland Amboori. From there, the devotees had to walk another kilometre before they could get some transport to Thiruvananthapuram city. The same process would repeat on their return.
“We would have to start in the wee hours of the day and cross the river to reach before the pongala begins. And on our return, we would reach home by late night or even past midnight. This was when we were young. Our seniors used to have it even tougher, with lack of any communication with people in the city, urging them to come to the temple premises as early as they could to secure spots for pongala.
Now, that isn’t required because we are better connected, and securing spots for pongala is easier. We book spots a month in advance, so that we don’t need to go through the hassle of finding a spot,” says Jijimol.
This time, things were much easier for the pongala goers from 11 settlements in the Thodumala ward. About 100 people attended the pongala in buses and jeeps arranged for the purpose, and the vehicles picked them up from their doorstep.
Seethalakshmi is even happier because even after the bridge came up, she and her neighbours still had to trek a rugged climb of about 2km to reach their tribal settlement. “Now, the vehicles will reach our doorstep well around 6pm,” she smiles.
“And now, on our way back, we sit back enjoying the music in the bus, hoping to reach home by evening,” says Jijimol, tired after her Pongala spree.