Sabarimala down to 5,000 Aravana tins amid pilgrim rush
The Sabarimala temple is facing a severe shortage of Aravana offerings due to high pilgrim footfall and maintenance-related production shutdowns. The Travancore Devaswom Board has implemented rationing to manage the limited supply.
Why it matters
Highlights logistical and management challenges at a major religious site during peak pilgrimage periods.
With just hours left for the ongoing monthly pilgrimage window to close, the Ayyappa temple at Sabarimala is facing an acute Aravana shortage , with just over 5,000 tins of the offering in stock.
Around 17,000 devotees are expected at the temple before it closes at 10 pm on Monday. As many as 15,000 devotees have booked darshan online, while spot bookings are expected to push the total footfall beyond 17,000.
Taking note of the shortage, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has already restricted Aravana sales to one tin per devotee, triggering protests among pilgrims over the past couple of days.
The Aravana production plant at Sannidhanam remained shut for maintenance just ahead of the opening of the hill shrine for the five day monthly puja on September 16. The board, however, failed to build adequate stocks of the offering before taking up the work, aggravating the shortage.
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