Pathanamthitta: The heavy rush at Sabarimala Sannidhanam shows no sign of slowing down even after two weeks of the Mandala season. On Sunday alone, 87,493 devotees completed darshan, despite the spot-booking limit being fixed at 5,000.
As of 8 AM today, 31,395 devotees have already reached the temple, and long queues continue to stretch through the trekking path. Authorities estimate that around 4,000 pilgrims are getting darshan every hour. Yesterday, the queue extended all the way to Marakkootam, forcing many devotees to wait for several hours before completing darshan.
To manage the situation, pilgrims are being released in regulated batches from Nilakkal and Pampa, depending on crowd density at the Sannidhanam.
Sources indicate that spot booking will be strictly controlled according to the daily crowd levels. The High Court has already permitted authorities to adjust the number of spot bookings based on real-time crowd conditions. The Devaswom Board and police will jointly take the decision by monitoring the flow of devotees throughout the day.
Meanwhile, Devaswom President K. Jayakumar is expected to arrive at the Sannidhanam today. A review meeting will also be held in Erumeli to ensure effective crowd management for the coming days.
