Thousands of pilgrims, mostly from Kerala and other southern States, arrived at Sabarimala temple to pay obeisance to Lord Ayyappa as its doors were opened on Friday, commencing a two-month-long pilgrimage to the hill shrine.
Devotees from various States, including Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, formed long queue at the Sannidhanam as the temple doors were opened by priests at 3 a.m. on Friday, the first day of the Malayalam month of Vrischikam, for the annual pilgrimage.
Kerala Devaswoms Minister K. Radhakrishnan along with MLAs Pramod Narayan and K.U. Jenish Kumar were present during the opening ceremony.
The newly-appointed president of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), P.S. Prasanth, also offered prayers at the temple in the early hours of Friday.
Later, Devaswoms Minister inaugurated the free food distribution at the Annadana Mandapam located at the Sannidhanam.
Talking to reporters after chairing a review meeting, the Minister assured devotees that basic facilities would be meticulously arranged in a time-bound manner, ensuring a seamless and comfortable Sabarimala pilgrimage experience for all.
The sanctum sanctorum was opened on the eve of the pilgrim season on Thursday under the aegis of temple tantri (head priest) Mahesh Mohanararu.
New melshanthis (chief priests) of the Sabarimala and Malikappuram temples, P.N. Mahesh and P.G. Murali respectively, have assumed charge for conducting rituals at the shrine for next one year.
