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Judicial probe ordered into Sabarimala tragedy

The Kerala government has ordered a judicial inquiry into Thursday's stampede and landslide near Pampa in Sabarimala.

The death toll, meanwhile, has reached 52. A report said a victim succumbed to his injuries at the Kottayam Medical College hospital early Friday morning.

Of the dead, 43 are men, three women and six children. Most of them are from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

The condition of the 10 injured is stated to be serious. They are being treated at the Kottayam Medical College.

The other injured have been admitted to the Pathanamthitta and Kozhencherry government hospitals.

The government and the Travancore Devaswom Board announced separate financial packages to the families of the victims.

The state government announced an ex gratia of Rs 25,000 to the families of each of the deceased adult and Rs 15,000 each to those of the children. Also, financial assistance ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 would be paid to the injured, official sources said.

Board Chairman V G K Menon said in a telephone interview from Sabarimala sannidhanam that the board would give Rs 10,000 to the families of the deceased and Rs 2,500 to Rs 5,000 to those of the injured.

Sabarimala Special Commissioner K P Balachandran, the Kerala high court's representative there, faxed his report on the accident to the court early Friday. When contacted, Balachandran, also the Thrissur district judge, confirmed having sent the report.

A report from Pampa said Kerala Health Minister A C Shanmughadas, Revenue Minister K E Ismail and Agriculture Minister Krishnan Kaniyamparambil and senior district officials visited the spot.

More than 40 million pilgrims visit the hill shrine after an arduous 5-km trek from Pampa to the sannidhanam, during the Mandalam-Makara Vilakku season from the middle of November to the middle of January.

Incidentally, different versions about the cause of the accident are doing the rounds. One version suggests that the stampede was caused by an electric shock suffered by a few pilgrims standing on the hill top to watch the mysterious Makara Jyoti , which appeared at 1845 hours on Thursday. This stirred a stampede and fall from the hill-top, it said.

Relief operations began in full swing on Friday morning. Power cut and darkness had hampered the district administration's effort on Thursday night.

There was an unprecedented rush at Pampa and Sabarimala on Thursday night.

UNI

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