550 women sign up for temple prayers
Health department to deploy 3,000-strong squad for Sabarimala
Atotal of 550 women from the hitherto banned age group of 10 to 50 years have registered online for prayers at the Sabarimala temple, during the upcoming festival season beginning on November 16.
According to the Travancore Devasom Board, close to 350,000 pilgrims had booked slots for ‘darshan’ through the Kerala police online facility, as of yesterday. This included 550 women aged between 10 and 50 years, the Board said.
The online registration platform, designed and developed by the police to regulate and streamline visits, is poised to weed out troublemakers who have created disturbances in the last two months, in and around the temple.
Both temple authorities and protesters stopped 15 women in the 10-50 age group from praying at the Lord Ayyappa shrine in October and November, despite a September 28 Supreme Court ruling that allowed all women to enter the hilltop shrine.
Between October 17 and 22 and again in November, when the temple opened for a day, women devotees faced stiff resistance at Sabarimala.
Ahead of the next pilgrimage, the Supreme Court on November 13 will hear a batch of petitions against its September verdict.
The Left government in Kerala, which said it would implement the apex court ruling, opened the ‘Sabarimala Virtual Q-System’, introduced in the 2011-12 season and used until 2015.
The online booking, along the lines of the one at the Tirupati temple, is expected to enable pilgrims to book their darshan in the upcoming festival season.
The Q-booking is linked to travel between Nilackal to Pamba, from where the pilgrims have to walk up to the temple located on a hill.
As per the online booking, all pilgrims can take their vehicles up to Nilackal. From there, they can only board the Kerala State Road Transport Corp (KSRTC) buses.
Health centres en route
Meanwhile, anticipating a huge turnout at Sabarimala for the Mandala-Makaravilakku festival season, the health department has decided to deploy a 3,000-strong contingent of its employees, including doctors.
An emergency operation theatre will also be set up at Sannidhanam. Doctors from different districts will be deputed for service on a rotation basis.
A nodal officer has been appointed to monitor the health department’s activities at Sabarimala. From Pamba to Sannidhanam, 16 health care centres will be set up to provide cardio and respiratory health care for devotees.