Pathanamthitta: The Lord Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala opened for the 41-day Mandala Season pilgrimage on Monday. 

The rituals were carried out in the presence of chief priest (tantri) Kandararu Mahesh Mohanararu by outgoing priest V K Jayaraj Potti.

The new priests N Parameshwaran Namboothiri and Shabhu Namboothiri took charge at the Ayyappa Temple and Malikappuram Devi Temple respectively after the ritualistic poojas. 

The Kerala Government has decided to limit the number of pilgrims to the hill-top shrine considering the heavy rains and precautions against COVID-19.

The restrictions in view of the rain are likely to remain for the next 3-4 days.

The ritualistic bathing in the river Pamba will not be allowed as its levels are dangerously high. Moreover, spot-booking for the viewing (darshan) the deity has been stopped for the time being, the government said on Sunday.

Allotment of new dates for those who booked through the virtual queue system will also be considered to control the flow of pilgrims. 

By Monday, more than 1.3 million devotees had made advanced booking for their temple visit.

Appam and aravana ready

The temple authorities have informed that the items required for ritualistic offerings as well as "appam" and "aravana" to be given as 'prasad' to devotees are ready. 

"The present stock of aravana was around one million containers. Two lakh packets of appam are also ready. The production of two lakh containers of aravana and one lakh packets of appam a day will be done to meet the daily demands," the authorities said. 

Security up, precautions in place

The security at the temple has been beefed up.  Additional Director General of Police S Sreejith is in-charge of the security.

Kerla Health Minister Veena George said all arrangements are in place to ensure the safety and security of Sabarimala pilgrims in the wake of heavy rains in Pathanamthitta district, where the temple is situated.

"The functioning of departments concerned is being closely monitored. Certain roads to the temple and adjacent areas have been damaged in the incessant rain. Traffic has been diverted from the roads which are flood-prone," Veena said after a high-level meeting at the Pathanamthitta District Collectorate.

The minister also said the departments have been directed to ensure that the route to the hill-top shrine is safe.

The government has decided to allow only 30,000 devotees per day this season to have 'darshan' through a virtual queue system after considering the COVID-19 pandemic situation.

The annual pilgrimage is being held strictly adhering to COVID-19 protocol with authorities insisting that vaccination certificate or RT-PCR negative certificate taken within 72 hours is mandatory for visiting the hill shrine.

The devotees should also produce original Aadhaar cards. Trekking to the temple would be allowed only through the Swami Ayyappan Road.

The ghee being brought by the pilgrims in coconuts for Neyyabhishekam would be collected by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) staff through special counters and sanctified ghee would be returned to the pilgrims from a different outlet.

Arrangements have been made for the pilgrims to purchase 'prasadam' while returning to Pampa after having 'darshan'.
Mandala Puja 

The 41-day Mandala Season pilgrimage concludes on December 26 with the Mandala Puja.
The temple would be opened again on December 30 for the Makaravilakku pilgrimage. The Makaravilakku is on January 14, 2022, and the temple will be closed on January 20, 2022.

The temple, which is the biggest earner for the TDB, the body that runs this temple and numerous others in the south Kerala districts, has had a troubled festival season for a few years since 2018.  

First came a Supreme Court order which gave the nod for opening of the temple to all women. The temple has been traditionally barred for women in the age group of 10 to 50 years and with the Kerala government determined to go forward with the apex court's directive, the Sangh Parivar affiliates launched a massive protest and numerous clashes broke out.

And then came the COVID-19 pandemic, which halted the two-month-long festival season in 2020 and this year, too, things are not that rosy as all pilgrims arriving have either to carry a negative RT-PCR test report taken prior to 72 hours or should have taken both the vaccine jabs. Worsening the situation rains and floods too hindered the regular flow of pilgrims.