Thiruvananthapuram: The Travancore Devaswom Board which administers the Sabarimala temple has revised its earlier decision to limit darshan exclusively to online bookings for the upcoming pilgrimage season. As part of this change, the number of online bookings has been reduced from 80,000 to 70,000. The board's booking website, launched on Wednesday, reflects the updated limit.
It is reported that the remaining 10,000 slots will be available for spot booking through kiosks set up at Idathavalams (rest stops) for Ayyappa devotees who arrive without prior booking. However, Devaswom Board members and officials have refrained from explicitly calling this "spot booking." Instead, they are reiterating their previous stance that no devotee who comes to Sabarimala after observing the proper rituals will be denied darshan.
On October 14, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan assured the Legislative Assembly that no devotee who visits Sabarimala ritually will be turned away without darshan. Travancore Devaswom Board President PS Prashanth also confirmed this.
While neither the government nor the Devaswom Board has officially addressed the concept of spot booking, the total daily booking limit has been reduced from 80,000 to 70,000. The Sabarimala temple will open on the evening of November 15 for this year's Mandala-Makaravilakku pujas. Earlier this week, the government had ruled out spot booking for Sabarimala darshan, inviting sharp criticism.
