Sabarimala Pilgrimage: The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has commenced virtual queue bookings for the upcoming Sabarimala pilgrimage season, capping the number of daily pilgrims at 70,000. This limit is 10,000 fewer than the previously set cap of 80,000 devotees per day.
While the board has yet to clarify the allocation of the remaining 10,000 slots, some reports suggest that these may be reserved for spot bookings, even though the term "spot booking" is not being officially used, as per a report on Manorama. Last year, the same number of virtual queue slots were offered to devotees online.
Speculation about spot bookings gained momentum after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan stated in the Assembly that online registration would not be mandatory for pilgrims seeking darshan at the hill shrine. Responding to a submission by MLA V Joy, the Chief Minister assured that those arriving without prior online registration would still be allowed to visit the temple during the pilgrimage season.
"Smooth arrangements will be made for darshan, even for those who come without registering online or who are unaware of the system," said Vijayan, as per PTI, adding that similar provisions had been made in the previous pilgrimage season. This move has sparked debate, especially with the state government’s earlier declaration of an 80,000 daily limit for pilgrims.
During his brief speech, the chief minister did not explicitly confirm whether the spot booking system, used alongside the virtual queue booking last year, would be retained.
He mentioned that an evaluation meeting on October 5 had deliberated on allowing spot booking for Sabarimala pilgrims.
The CM further explained that the meeting also focused on ensuring secure and smooth darshan for all pilgrims visiting the hill temple.
Meanwhile, S Arun Kumar Namboothiri was selected as Melsanthi (chief priest) of Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala on Thursday.
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