Pathanamthitta: A 58-year-old woman from Koyilandy in Kozhikode district collapsed and died while waiting in the queue for darshan at the Lord Ayyappa shrine in Sabarimala on Tuesday, district administration sources said. The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) confirmed that her body would be transported to her native place at the board’s expense.
The incident occurred as nearly two lakh devotees thronged the shrine within 48 hours of its opening for the annual mandala-makaravilakku pilgrimage season, putting immense pressure on the TDB and police to manage the massive crowd. Television visuals showed pilgrims packed tightly near the 18 steps leading to the shrine, with many facing hours-long delays. Small children carried on parents’ shoulders were seen crying amidst the jostling crowd.
There were reported complaints of lack of water for pilgrims standing in line for several hours. In response, newly appointed TDB president K Jayakumar said 200 additional personnel were deployed to provide water and refreshments to devotees. He also issued instructions to ensure devotees climb the 18 steps steadily without cutting queues.
Jayakumar described the crowd as “massive and dangerous” and announced measures to ease congestion at Nilakkal, including additional spot booking counters and restrictions on the flow of devotees from Pamba. Entry to Sabarimala has been temporarily capped at one lakh devotees per day, with spot bookings limited to 20,000 per day from Wednesday.
ADGP S Sreejith said the situation remained under control but acknowledged two main issues: over-demand for spot bookings and pilgrims not arriving on their scheduled virtual-Q slots. He added that sufficient police personnel had been deployed, but many devotees were bypassing designated queues.
The TDB is also bringing in around 200 cleaning personnel from Tamil Nadu to maintain sanitation at the temple. Officials stressed that devotees are encouraged to enter the queue complexes, which allows better management of the crowd, distribution of water, and provision of biscuits.
Meanwhile, opposition parties criticised the state government and TDB for inadequate arrangements. Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan alleged that basic facilities, including drinking water and sufficient police presence, were not provided, and accused political motives in organising the Global Ayyappa Sangam for disrupting the pilgrimage. Former Union Minister V Muraleedharan echoed similar concerns.
With PTI inputs