Vandiperiyar: Token-Based Spot Booking System Introduced
Munnar: To make spot booking easier for Ayyappa devotees, police have started issuing tokens at Vandiperiyar. Many devotees travel to Sabarimala through the Sathram–Pulmedu forest route near Vandiperiyar in Idukki district. This route is widely used by pilgrims.
For the convenience of devotees, spot booking is available at Sathram. As the number of pilgrims has increased recently, a token system has been introduced at Vandiperiyar to reduce crowding and manage spot booking smoothly. The token distribution is arranged at the vehicle parking ground of Harrison Malayalam Company’s Valardy Estate near Vandiperiyar.
Traffic Congestion Issue
Until the last Sabarimala season, devotees’ vehicles were parked at the mini stadium in Vandiperiyar. As the stadium is now under renovation, vehicle parking is not allowed there this season. Following the intervention of the local panchayat, the Harrison Malayalam Company provided parking facilities for Ayyappa devotees at the Valardy Estate.
However, many devotees are parking their vehicles along the roadside instead of using the designated parking ground. This has led to severe traffic congestion in Vandiperiyar. To avoid traffic problems, the panchayat administration has advised devotees to use the allotted parking area.