Income soars to ₹210 crore at Sabarimala

Riding on the back of a sharp rise in pilgrim inflow, income at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple has reached ₹210 crore. Of this, ₹106 crore was earned from the sale of ‘aravana’. Compared to previous years, there has been a significant increase in revenue, said K. Jayakumar, president, Travancore Devaswom Board.

As the Sabarimala pilgrimage season, which began on November 16, completed one month, the total number of devotees who have had darshan of Lord Ayyappa reached 28 lakh. The number of pilgrims arriving through forest trekking routes has also increased this season, with a total of 46,690 devotees reaching Sannidhanam via the Azhuthakkadavu-Pampa route, while 74,473 pilgrims arriving through the Sathram route. Discussions are ongoing with the police and the Forest department to regulate this flow, including the introduction of special passes for those arriving via the Erumely-Azhutha forest path. Overall, 25,60,297 devotees reached Sabarimala from Pampa.

Elephant attack

Meanwhile, a joint inspection by the police and the Forest department was carried out along the Pullumedu forest trail on Thursday to ensure the safety of Ayyappa pilgrims. The inspection followed an incident on the night of December 17, when elephants damaged the roof and fencing of the Forest department’s check-post at Pandithavalam

Following this, officials thoroughly examined the forest trail in the morning, confirming that it was free from any wildlife hazards. Once safety was ensured, devotees were allowed to proceed along the route.

Meanwhile, the restriction of 20 tins of aravana per person will continue. Following the mandala puja, the temple will close on December 27, and reopen after three days. Additional aravana will be produced to build buffer stock, said K. Jayakumar, president, TDB.

The pilgrimage season began this year with a stock of 45 lakh aravana tins. While daily sales were initially expected to be around 3.5 lakh tins, actual sales averaged 4.5 lakh tins a day, rapidly depleting stocks. Currently, more than 10 lakh tins are available as reserve. At present, about 3 lakh tins are produced daily, with an additional 1 lakh drawn from reserve stock.

Efforts are also under way to resolve logistical issues related to serving Kerala-style meals as part of ‘annadanam.’ Adequate stocks of provisions have already been procured.

Tech master plan

Meanwhile, Mr. Jayakumar said there was no rigidity regarding spot booking. The court has allowed flexibility based on circumstances, and decisions will be taken depending on pilgrim inflow. For now, the daily limit of 5,000 spot bookings will continue.

The TDB also aims to adopt greater use of technology in managing the pilgrimage. A technology master plan is being prepared, in line with the court directives. AI and GPS-based systems could be used to estimate travel time from Nilackal to Pampa and waiting time on queues, enabling smoother crowd management, the TDB president added.