PATHANAMTHITTA: Thousands of devotees had a harrowing time after inadequate crowd management measures and insufficient transport facilities left them stranded for hours at Sabarimala on Sunday, the opening day of darshan for the Thulam month at the hill shrine.
Irked by a shortage of buses, a large number of pilgrims blocked the road in protest even as the officials attributed the disruption to ongoing road repair work along the Nilackal-Pampa stretch and the failure to deploy sufficient KSRTC buses to meet the surge in demand.
With the rituals falling on a weekend, routes to the shrine saw an unprecedented rush of devotees. Traffic congestion ended up crippling movement of pilgrims along the Nilackal-Pampa route.
A vehicle carrying children from Pandalam Palace, who had travelled to Sabarimala to participate in the melshanthi selection process, was also stuck in traffic for hours. The congestion extended up to Attathodu, while an accident along the route further aggravated the situation. Those returning after darshan also faced prolonged waits for buses.
In view of the situation, the Temple Ritual Protection Committee, a devotee organisation, convened an emergency review meeting and held discussions with authorities to address the hardships faced by devotees.
The developments came on a day when Devaswom Minister K Muraleedharan expressed concern over shortcomings in crowd management and coordination. He said he had directed the TDB to remain extra vigilant until October 22, when the temple closes after the monthly rituals.
Meanwhile, virtual queue bookings for the first three days of the monthly pooja season have crossed 1.5 lakh. Around 60,000 pilgrims have booked slots for both Sunday and Monday, while spot bookings are expected to push the numbers higher.
In anticipation of the rush, the police have doubled the force at Sabarimala. Of the 800 personnel assigned crowd management duties, 500 have already reached Sannidhanam. Another 90 have been entrusted exclusively with regulating the movement of devotees along the 18 holy steps.
With the 41-day annual pilgrimage season set to begin next month, the disruption has renewed concerns. “Just a few weeks are left before the annual pilgrimage season begins, but several public infrastructure works, including road repairs, are already lagging behind. If the authorities fail to complete the roadwork and other preparations on time, the annual pilgrimage season could descend into chaos,” an official said.
The temple will remain open until October 22 for the Thulam month rituals. It is scheduled to reopen on November 16 for the Mandalam-Makaravilakku pilgrimage season.
