Authorities struggle to manage massive pilgrim flow at Sabarimala

Pathanamthitta: As nearly two lakh devotees arrived at the Lord Ayyappa shrine at Sabarimala here on Tuesday within 48 hours of the temple opening for the annual 'mandala-makaravilakku' pilgrimage season, the TDB and the police struggled to manage the massive flow of pilgrims, including children.

Visuals on TV channels showed a massive crowd of devotees packed like sardines in the small area in front of the 18 steps that have to be climbed to reach the main doors of the shrine.

Large crowds of devotees packed the pilgrimage route from Pamba, the foothills of Sabarimala, to the Sannidhanam, with many facing hours-long delays in climbing the path.

Small children carried on top of their parents' shoulders could be seen crying as the huge crowd of devotees jostled with each other to move forward.

Many devotees were seen climbing over the barricades in place for crowd control, with the police failing to prevent such incidents.

There were also reported complaints of pilgrims not receiving water while standing in the long queues for hours.

Earlier, newly appointed Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) president K Jayakumar said that instructions have been issued to ensure devotees are able to steadily climb the 18 steps for the darshan and that no one cuts the lines to move in front.

He also said that 200 additional personnel have been assigned to go to the people in the queues and provide them with water.

"I have never seen such a massive and dangerous crowd on the temple grounds till now. It appears some people cut the line to jump in front. Even I am scared seeing the large crowd here.

"I have issued directions to ensure steady movement of the pilgrims and ensure no one cuts the line or queue. Such a large crowd should not have collected here," he said.

Jayakumar also said that he has issued directions to restrict the flow of devotees at Nilakkal to reduce the crowd of pilgrims at Pamba and ensure they can complete their pilgrimage quickly without having to wait 3-5 hours in queues.

"People can wait at Nilakkal. There are facilities there for that. Also, will set up seven additional spot booking counters there so that devotees do not have to come to Pamba for that," he said.

Later, restrictions were put in place and devotees were temporarily prevented from moving forward at Nilakkal and some other waypoints along the pilgrimage route as part of the crowd control measures.

ADGP S Sreejith contended that things were still in control.

He said that last year, the number of pilgrims crossed the one lakh mark on four separate days.

But this time, within two days, around two lakh pilgrims have arrived for the pilgrimage.

There are two problems, and these can be resolved if the people cooperate. Firstly, despite us capping spot booking at 20,000 as per court directions, more people are turning up for it.

"They are demanding immediate darshan through spot booking. So, we had to allow 37,000 people through spot booking as we could not turn them away," he told reporters here.

The second problem was that people arriving through virtual-Q booking were not arriving on the day they had booked.

"They turn up when they feel like it. They should not do that. If people come in a disciplined manner, these problems can be resolved," he said.

Sreejith also said that enough police personnel have been deployed.

Furthermore, many people are not coming via queues, which has also resulted in the present situation, he added.

In the morning, the TDB president said that the devotees were not entering the queue complexes set up at Sabarimala, afraid that they might lose their priority in the line.

"But, if they enter the queue complexes, it would be easier for us to provide them with water and biscuits," he said.

He also said that around 200 cleaning personnel were being brought from Tamil Nadu to clean the toilets at Sabarimala.

Later in the afternoon, Jayakumar said that things were not out of control.

He said that entry to Sabarimala will be restricted to one lakh per day.

"This is an unprecedented crowd. There is nothing to be concerned about right now. From tomorrow, spot booking will be restricted to 20,000 per day. Things will be normalised soon," he added.

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress and the BJP accused the state government of not making arrangements for a smooth pilgrimage for the devotees.

Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, V D Satheesan, claimed that the government and the TDB have "failed" to provide basic facilities, like drinking water, to the pilgrims and that adequate police personnel were not deputed.

Satheesan termed as "ridiculous" the government's alleged stand that proper arrangements could not be made due to the model code of conduct coming into operation after announcement of the local body polls, saying that the preparations ought to have been made much earlier.

He alleged that those who organised the Global Ayyappa Sangam with political motives, spoiled this year's pilgrimage for devotees.

He sought the urgent intervention of the Kerala High Court in the matter.

Former Union Minister of State V Muraleedharan made similar allegations against the state government and the TDB.