KSRTC extends ticket validity for Sabarimala pilgrims

Kochi: Sabarimala pilgrims heading back after praying at the hill shrine don't have to be concerned about missing the KSRTC buses they reserved online because of delayed arrival.

The KSRTC has taken the innovative step of extending the online ticket validity from Pampa to a number of destinations to 24 hours following the departure of a specific service. This means that pilgrims who miss their scheduled bus can take another one of the same type to the same location.

The Sabarimala hill shrine frequently sees a large influx of devotees who often stand in queue for hours waiting to receive darshan. The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) had to prolong the darshan timings due to the unprecedented rush, even when the temple opened for monthly poojas last month, New Indian Express reported.

“Pilgrims often book return tickets as well when they make the advance reservation. However, a lot of them miss the buses due to the heavy rush and queues. This was a regular complaint in previous seasons. Hence, we introduced the ‘extended validity’ facility from this season,” said a senior KSRTC official deployed at Pampa.

However, while making a group reservation, each person will need to provide their ID card if they are using this option to go on separate buses. As the season progresses and demand rises, KSRTC will shortly begin operating interstate long-haul buses from Pampa.

“A super-fast bus service has started operating from Guruvayur. The other long-haul buses, including interstate services, will be announced soon as and when there is a heavy rush of pilgrims in another one or two weeks.

We’ve applied for permits to operate services to Chennai, Theni, Tirunelveli, Madurai and Kanyakumari,” the official said.

Additionally, during peak hours, the KSRTC aims to run the Pampa-Nilakkal (21 km) chain services at a frequency of five buses per minute. AC buses cost Rs 80 per person, while non-AC buses cost Rs 50.

This Mandala-Makaravilakku season, up to 2.26 lakh devotees had been to the Sabarimala temple till Monday at 5 p.m.

Even though the darshan virtual queue slots were completely reserved until November 30 and the average daily online booking was limited to 70,000, there was a noticeable decline in the number of devotees actually arriving.

The decline in spot booking was similar as well. According to the Devaswom Board, the slowdown was temporary and would increase following the pandranduvilakku- the first 12 days of the 41-day season.