Aravana shortage at Sabarimala triggers outrage among devotees, puts UDF government on defensive

The shortage of canned Aravana payasam, a sacrament many Sabarimala pilgrims seek, has sparked widespread protests among devotees and put the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government on the defensive. 

A significant section of pilgrims, who trek to the ancient hill shrine, do not reckon their religious passage spiritually fulfilling and complete without bringing home the packaged offering to the presiding deity and distributing the tins to friends and family.

However, umbrage broke out on social and conventional media after the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) restricted the counter sale of Aravana to one tin per devotee, possibly to prevent hoarders and black-marketeers from exploiting the scarcity. 

The TDB said renovation work and upgrade of the Aravana production facility at Sannidhanam had caused the controversy. TDB president K Jayakumar was not immediately available for comment. 

Devaswom Minister K Muraleedharan said the government viewed the matter seriously. He held the TDB accountable for scaling down production, ostensibly for upgrading works at the production facility, when the temple had opened for pre-Mandala season poojas. “Such works, when pilgrims flock to the temple and crowd Aravana counters in sizeable numbers for the sacrament, have not happened in the past. The Aravana scarcity has reflected poorly on the UDF government and also the office of the Devaswom Minister. The government will hold those responsible for the lack of oversight and failure to predict pilgrim footfall that has distressed thousands of devotees”, he told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram. 

Mr. Muraleedharan said he had spoken with the TDB president, who promised it would not happen again. Meanwhile, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) opposition has faulted the government for failing to stock an adequate amount of the tinned sacrament before scaling down Aravana production for repair works at the production facility. Mr Muraleedharan said the TDB could have avoided the situation by scheduling the repair works at the Aravana production unit when the temple remained closed to pilgrims. 

The TDB reportedly told the government that the number of pilgrims visiting the temple in the run-up to the Mandala season had risen sharply and unexpectedly, compared to past years, dwindling Aravana buffer stocks considerably and forcing authorities to ration sales.