The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) on Thursday announced that spot booking for Sabarimala darshan has been capped at 5,000 devotees per day, following directions from the Kerala High Court. According to a press release, spot bookings will now be available only at the Nilakkal and Vandiperiyar centres, while the facility at Pampa, Erumeli, and Chengannur has been temporarily suspended until November 24.
TDB has urged pilgrims to use the Virtual Queue system as much as possible and to strictly adhere to their allotted date and time for darshan.
Kerala High Court's division bench of Justices Raja Vijayaraghavan V and K V Jayakumar criticised TDB, saying that the situation at the shrine had recently spiralled out of control as nearly two lakh pilgrims arrived within 48 hours of the temple opening on November 17.
With nearly one lakh pilgrims were allowed darshan every day during the Mandalam–Makaravilakku season and more than 50 lakh visiting annually, the judges said the present arrangements were far from adequate.
Meanwhile, a review meeting of various departments was held at Sabarimala on Thursday to evaluate preparations for the ongoing pilgrimage season. Chaired by Additional District Magistrate Arun S Nair, the meeting concluded that crowd flow at the shrine has since been brought under control and that smooth, safe darshan is being ensured.
Officials noted that the issues seen in the initial days have been fully addressed. The meeting also reviewed arrangements for emergency medical care, crowd control, sanitation, drinking water, and food distribution.
(With PTI inputs)
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