Kochi: The Kerala High Court has directed the Pathanamthitta district administrator to take steps to ease the difficulties faced by Sabarimala pilgrims boarding Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses in Pampa. The court issued the order based on a report from “Manorama Online” which said that even pilgrims who made group bookings from Pampa were not allocated separate buses.
At a hearing on Saturday, defense lawyers representing the state government told the senior judges, comprising Justices Anil K Narendran and KP Ajith Kumar, that the matter had been brought to the attention of the district tax officer. The court said the necessary steps could be taken after discussions with the District Police Chief, Sabarimala Special Commissioner, KSRTC Special Officer and Executive Engineer of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), which manages the affairs of the Ayyappa Temple in Sabarimala.
Frequent accidents
Meanwhile, the court released Wednesday’s hearing on recurring accidents involving vehicles involving Sabarimala pilgrims from neighboring countries. An officer of the Kerala Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) is due to submit a report on the matter the same day.
A 10-year-old pilgrim was killed and 13 others were injured when a vehicle from Tamil Nadu skidded and overturned at Kannimala in Kottayam at 3.15pm on December 16, the court heard petition.
Two other vehicles belonging to pilgrims have also been involved in accidents in recent days. MVD enforcement officers have been visiting Sabarmala, places of rest (‘edathavalams’) on the route to temples and places where free food (‘annadanam’) is provided to raise awareness of drivers following an accident involving a vehicle from Andhra Pradesh. The condition of the road to Sabarimala. This is based on an earlier direction of the High Court Chamber.
parking trouble
The court asked the Devaswom Board to make a layout plan of the 16 parking bays in Nilakkal in view of the trouble pilgrims face in parking. The Police Inspector of Nilakkal has also become a respondent in the case.
