With Kerala's Sabarimala Ayyappa temple preparing for its annual 'Makaravilakku' festival on Thursday, the temple and its nearby premises that used to be jam-packed with at least a lakh pilgrims, will only see 5,000 pilgrims this time.
In view of the steep fall in revenue from the temple during this pilgrimage season owing to restrictions on number of pilgrims due to Covid-19, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) that manages the temple is also exploring the option of keeping the temple open on more days during the monthly poojas. At present temple remains open only for a week for monthly poojas.
TDB President N Vasu said that while the revenue from the temple during last year's pilgrimage was around Rs 200 crore, it was only around Rs 15 crore this time. The fall in revenue was also affecting the functioning of other temples under the board. Hence, a financial assistance of Rs 100 crore would be sought from the state government.
Makaravilakku, a lamp lit in the forest areas of Ponnambalamedu on the mountain surrounding the hill shrine, and Makarajyothi (star) that appears in the sky are the highlights of the Makaravilakku festival.
By 6.30 pm, the idol of the presiding deity, Lord Ayyappa, would be adorned with the 'Thiruvabharanam' (sacred ornaments) being brought from the Pandalam Palace where Ayyappa is believed to have lived. The Makaravilakku will appear at around 6.45 pm. The two-month-long pilgrimage will end by January 20.
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