THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A high-level committee has been constituted under chief secretary Tom Jose to oversee the restoration of infrastructure in
Sabarimala, where the mandalam-makaravilakku festival begins on November 17. Principal secretary (public works) G Kamala Vardhana Rao has been appointed the special officer for restoration plans.
Chief minister
Pinarayi Vijayan said here on Friday that the government had initiated steps to restore Sabarimala in two months and Tata Projects Ltd had been entrusted with the task of reconstruction.
The high-level committee includes principal secretary (forests and wildlife) V Venu, principal secretary (transport and devaswoms) K R Jyothilal, water resources secretary Tinku Biswal, state police chief Loknath Behera and others.
The government has sanctioned Rs 200 crore to the public works department. The repair of 1037.46km roads leading to the shrine will be taken up on a war footing and these include 438.45km in Pathanamthitta, 106.83km in Kollam, 75.95km in Alappuzha, 137.11km in Idukki, 210.029km in Kottayam and 37.945km in Ernakulam. The PWD will also repair 31.1km of national highway.
The water resources department has estimated a loss of Rs 3.5 crore and the irrigation department Rs 8.76 crore. The Travancore Devaswom Board has estimated a loss of Rs 100 crore on account of damaged buildings, bridges, side walls and toilets. It has decided to keep the new constructions environment friendly. “No more permanent constructions will be permitted in the close vicinity of river,” board president A Padmakumar said.
It has been decided to fund the revival of infrastructure in Sabarimala from the funds of TDB which reportedly has over Rs 1,000 crore as deposits. Police have requested the government to include more devotees in the virtual queue system. Till last year, 16 lakh people had visited the shrine in the advance booking system. They have also requested to make Nilackal the new hub for regulating crowd as Pamba has been badly hit.
Sabarimala after flood.
