Pathanamthitta(Kerala), Nov 15 (PTI) The travel woes of aged devotees and freight movement to the Lord Ayyappa shrine at Sabarimala here will finally become easier by the next Mandala-Makaravilakku pilgrimage season when the much-awaited ropeway will come into operation, state Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan said on Friday.
The coming of the ropeway will also bring to an end the heavy pollution caused by the diesel tractors inside the Periyar Tiger reserve, the minister said.
Vasavan said the ropeway project had not taken off due to issues between the Revenue and Forest departments with regard to providing land for it.
But now the issues have been settled, paving the way for the project work which would start soon, Vasavan told PTI when he arrived here to attend the opening of the shrine for this year's pilgrimage season.
"We had already awarded the contract for the ropeway construction to a private company. But, an issue between the Forest and Revenue departments in awarding the land delayed the process. Now the Revenue department has agreed to hand over the same amount of land to the forest department in Kollam for the land provided in Sabarimala," the minister said.
He said the decision was taken in a joint meeting between the Revenue, Forest and Devaswom ministers.
"We were supposed to hand over the land for the construction today. But we changed the date as the shrine is opening today. We will be handing over the land on the 21st of this month," Vasavan said.
He said the transportation of goods to the hill-top shrine using diesel tractors has been causing a lot of pollution and the aged devotees had to depend on the 'dollys' (chair tied to two wooden poles that is carried by people) to reach the temple from Pamba.
"Once the ropeway comes, all these issues can be solved. It can be used for freight movement and also for taking aged and sick devotees to the shrine," he said.
The ropeway will also be used for ambulance services, for enabling quick medical attention to patients, he added.
The Sabarimala ropeway is a 2.7 km long cable car system that will connect Pamba hilltop to Sannidhanam. This project is being implemented under the Built, Operate and Transfer (BOT) system at a cost outlay of Rs 250 crores.
The project has been criticised by environmentalists who have claimed that it would result in widespread tree felling and removal of soil from the hills that are part of the pristine Periyar Tiger Reserve.
Though the initial plan of completion was scheduled for the 2027 season, the minister said that efforts were on to get it operational by the 2025 season.