Work of food safety wing lauded

A Division Bench of the High Court has issued a set of directives to improve pilgrim facilities at Sabarimala.

The court issued the order on April 9 after taking note of the final report submitted by Special Commissioner K. Babu on the conduct of the previous Mandalam-Makaravilakku pilgrimage.

The Bench comprising Justice T.R. Ramachandran Nair and P.V. Asha said the Special Commissioner had made certain important suggestions.

The court said there was a need to improve sanitation facilities and drinking water supply at Sabarimala, Pampa, Nilackal, and on the trekking paths. Sufficient number of free toilets should be provided at these places. The TDB should explore the possibility of installing more e-toilets for woman pilgrims on the trekking path, the court said.

Water kiosks should be set up to check the exploitation of pilgrims by vendors. The Public Works Department (PWD) and the TDB should complete the annual repair and maintenance of various buildings at Sabarimala and at various base camps before the commencement of the next pilgrim season.

The court lauded the Food Safety Department for the ‘bold stand’ it had taken to ensure the quality of Appam, Aravana, and other food articles during the previous pilgrim season.

The PWD had been directed to complete the repair of all roads leading to Sabarimala before October 31. The Special Commissioner’s report put the total number of pilgrim casualties on the Sabarimala trekking path at 30.

The court directed the government to deploy trained volunteers to help pilgrims on the trekking path. The court stressed the need to extend the Safe Zone project of the Motor Vehicles Department to more areas. The court made special references to the services rendered by Sunil Babu, Safe Zone Nodal Officer; P. Vijayan, Deputy Inspector General of Police, who launched the Punyam Poonkavanam cleaning drive; C.P. Gopakumar, Superintendent of Police in charge of the Vigilance and Security wing of the TDB; volunteers of the Akhila Bharatha Ayyappa Seva Sanghom and the Amritanandamayi Math.

Source:http://www.thehindu.com