“First Time Such Rush in Final Days”: Heavy Pilgrim Flow at Sabarimala; Police Restrictions at Pampa
credits: SASIDHARAN
With only hours left for the conclusion of the Sabarimala Mandala–Makaravilakku pilgrimage, a steady stream of devotees is heading to the Sannidhanam seeking the blessings of Lord Ayyappa. Officials who have been on duty at the Sannidhanam for years say that this is the first time they have experienced such heavy crowds in the final days of the pilgrimage season. Yesterday, 99,700 devotees arrived for darshan. By this evening today, 67,000 people had already arrived. Long queues are seen at the appam and aravana counters.
As the crowd increased, the police imposed restrictions on pilgrims at Pampa. At the same time, devotees who had been staying at the Sannidhanam have begun their descent. Today, after the completion of the Neyyabhishekam, pilgrims had to wait up to four hours to climb the sacred 18 steps and have darshan.
Darshan for pilgrims at Sabarimala will conclude at 10 p.m. on Monday night. Marking the end of the pilgrimage, the Guruthi ritual will be held at Malikappuram area tomorrow night. The temple doors will be closed at 6:30 a.m. on the 20th, and darshan on that day will be allowed only for the Pandalam Landlord family representative.