In wake of unprecedented rush, a meeting chaired by chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday decided to restrict the daily footfall in Sabarimala temple to 90,000 pilgrims.
On Monday too, the temple witnessed heavy rush as over 1.19 lakh pilgrims booked the pilgrimage and several roads leading to the shrine in Pathanamthitta district were clogged since Sunday night.
On Saturday, a mini stampede took place in Marakootum, on way to the hilltop, in which several pilgrims and police personnel received minor injuries prompting the high court to hold a special sitting on Sunday who instructed the temple board and police to take relevant steps.
The CM called a meeting in view of the HC directive and mounting complaints of pilgrims who were forced to stand more than 8-10 hours.
“The government is committed to improve facilities to ensure a trouble-free pilgrimage,” the CM said after the meeting.
The meeting also decided to extend “darshan” timings by an hour.
The sanctum sanctorum which opens at 3am will be closed at 11:30 pm. Review meeting will be held every week by the temple affairs minister and concerned department heads. Parking facility in Nilakkal, main base camp, will also be improved to accommodate more vehicles, the CM said.
“We will take all possible steps to ensure smooth pilgrimage. We will inform the high court about steps being taken to control the rush,” Travancore Dewasom Board (TDB) president K Ananthagopan said.
The TDB manages day to day affairs of the temple.