Sabarimala, Guruvayur temples to get govt aid

Sabarimala and Guruvayur temples in Kerala will get Central government funds for augmentation of public amenities and other facilities.

Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s instructions, the Ministry of Tourism decided to include the two temples in the list of sites identified for beautification and development under the Pilgrimage Rejuvenation And Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASAD). The decision was taken after a delegation from Kerala’s tourism department, led by Tourism Minister A C Moideen, called on Union Tourism and Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma here.

The Centre allocated Rs 100 crore funds for development and beautification of as many as 13 popular pilgrimage sites in the country which included those in Ajmer, Amritsar, Amaravati, Dwarka, Gaya, Kedarnath, Kamakhya, Kanchipuram, Mathura, Patna, Puri, Varanasi and Velankanni. With the inclusion of the two temples, the number of sites under PRASAD has gone up to 15.

Sabarimala has been in limelight, of late, over demands for unrestricted entry to women into the temple. The matter is subjudiced in the Supreme Court as for and against public debates on the issue remain inconclusive. Moideen, during his meeting with Sharma, requested for an increased support from the Centre for maintaining growth of the tourism sector in Kerala.

He told Sharma that a compulsory requirement for foreign tourists to provide their biometric data while getting visa on arrival was not being appreciated by many of the visitors from abroad, and urged the Union minister to consider if this precondition condition in visa-on arrival scheme could be done away with.