Marking the beginning of the second phase of the annual pilgrimage season, the Lord Ayyappa temple here opened this evening for the M🔴akaravilakku festival.
Though the portal🅠s of the hill shrine were opened at 5.00 pm, devotees would be allowed to enter from Thursday morning only, officials of the❀ Travancore Devaswom Board, (TDB) which manages the shrine, said.
The auspicious Makaravilakku festival falls on January♐ 14 and the shrine would be closed on January 20.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, only 5,000 devotees would be permitted to offer prayers🐬 at the shrine per day during the Makaravilakku season, they said.
A𒆙s in the first phase of the pilgrimage which eဣnded on December 26 with customary Mandala pooja, a COVID negative certificate, taken within 48 hours of the pilgrimage, is mandatory in the second leg also.
Pilgrims, who do not have such a v🐓irus negative certificate, would not be allowed to proceed further from the base camps- Nilakkal and Pampa-- to Sannidhanam (temple complex), TDB officials added.
