102 pilgrims were killed in one of the worst stampedes at Pulmedu, in the foothills of Sabarimala on January 14. The victims were mostly from the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Tens of thousands of pilgrims had assembled in pitch dark in the grasshills surrounded by dense forests at Pulmedu on the fateful day, for darsan of Makaravilakku, when the tragedy struck. A packed jeep had lost control and ploughed into a crowd of devotees stuffed onto a narrow road. Most of the casualties were out of the stampede which followed.
Only five among the victims were Keralites. A Sri Lankan devotee who had been to Sabarimala for the first time, also lost his life in the mishap.