"Deploy Adequate Staff At Sabarimala": Union Minister To Pinarayi Vijayan

Union Minister G Kishan Reddy has written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan requesting him to deploy adequate personnel and staff at Sabarimala temple to reduce the wait time of devotees.

In the letter, the Union Minister also requested Mr Vijayan to ensure basic amenities, such as food, water, sanitation, and medical facilities, are provided to devotees.

The Minister requested that the Chief Minister address the inconveniences faced by Lord Ayyappa devotees during their pilgrimage to the Sabarimala temple.

On X, Mr Reddy posted, "Wrote a letter to Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan to address issues and inconveniences being faced by the Lord Ayyappa devotees during their pilgrimage to Sabarimala. I also requested to ensure adequate staff and personnel, safe and secure passage, improved basic amenities, and medical assistance during their journey to Sabarimala."

In his letter to the Chief Minister, Mr Reddy wrote, "The Sabarimala Temple and the associated 40-day spiritual journey undertaken by the devotees of Lord Ayyappa are considered to be one of the most revered belief systems within the Hindu faith."

"You would be aware that every year close to a crore devotees visit Sabarimala, with a majority of them paying their respects to Lord Ayyappa during the Mandala season between November and January. Devotees from the Telugu states of Telangana, where I hail from, and Andhra Pradesh account for more than 15 lakh devotees," it read.

"It has come to my attention first-hand from Ayyappa Swami bhaktas and through various news reports of the severe inconveniences being faced by devotees due to long wait times at the Sannidhanam. The recent death of a young girl while waiting to avail of darshan has also caused much anguish and pain," the Union Minister said.

"It is of vital importance that the devotees availing of Lord Ayyappa's Darshan are provided a safe and secure passage without any inconveniences. The Government of India is ready to support initiatives in this regard," added the letter.

"I would also like to request that you consider permitting NGOs that are ready to provide assistance to operate on the temple premises and around the trekking path from Pampa to Sannidhanam," it stated.

Mr Reddy further requested a swift response and urged the Kerala Chief Minister to take all necessary action in the matter.

Earlier on Friday, alleging a lack of basic facilities in Sabarimala, Hindu Aikya Vedi held a protest march against the Kerala government in front of the Travancore Devaswom Board head office.

The protests came days after a surge in pilgrims strained the crowd management system in the hill temple, causing long queues and several hours of waiting for the pilgrims to get the Darshan.

However, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Wednesday that the situation at the Lord Ayyappa temple was under control and asserted that the government machinery was intervening diligently in temple matters.

A mismanagement-related situation erupted at Sabarimala following the sudden surge of pilgrims a few days ago. The hill shrine generally witnesses a heavy rush during the Mandalam-Makaravilakku season, which began on November 17 this year.

After the incident, the Kerala government has come under attack by opposition parties, including the BJP and Congress.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)