3 States to set up centres
Appropriate projects will be incorporated in the Sabarimala Master Plan to provide better basic facilities at the Nilackal base camp to the pilgrims coming from neighbouring States of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, M.P. Govindan Nair, Travancore Devaswom Board president, has said.
According to the TDB chief, Nilackal base camp is a place where pilgrims coming from outside Kerala spend a long time during their annual pilgrimage to Sabarimala and the board is bound to provide maximum possible pilgrim amenities there in a time-bound manner. All the three south Indian States are keen on extending active cooperation in the implementation of various pilgrim amenity projects at Nilackal, Mr. Nair says.
The State government has agreed to provide five acres of land each at Nilackal to all the three south Indian States for setting up their pilgrim amenity centres.
The Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister will be laying the foundation stone of the proposed Karnataka Bhavan at Nilackal during the Makaravilakku festival and the project will be completed before the next pilgrim season, the TDB chief says.