Click to play videoNew Delhi: Kerala High Court on Monday came down heavily on Kerala government and its various departments, saying that lack of coordination among them caused the tragic stampede in Idukki district which resulted in the death of over 100 pilgrims and injuries to 50 others.
Solutions were offered by a judicial probe in 1999 following a similar stampede. Among the measures was the need to monitor alternate routes to the shrine like the one at Pullumedu where the stampede happened. However, no lessons seem to have been learnt and no implementation done.
The fact being, successive governments were waiting for a tragedy to happen with no interest in looking for solutions.
The Kerala government in its defence blames the bio diverse area around Sabarimala temple which has prevented infrastructural development.
The Kerala government says that the forest area falls under Periyar tiger reserve. So they have no permission for lighting, toilets, parking nor can they widen or improve the narrow forest road on which only jeeps can ply. The Kerala government says that lives could have been saved if there was medical help around and it took six hours for victims to be taken to nearest health center.
A lot of questions remain unanswered like why did the authorities leave so many vehicles on the route, because one of the main reasons which caused stampede is vehicles on either side of the way. One of the vehicles toppled which triggered the whole stampede.
Crime branch investigation and a judicial probe is underway. The question remains that will the government now get its act together in implementing the Sabarimala master plan or will it wait to see some more lives to be sacrificed in one of south India's most popular and high revenue earning pilgrim centre.
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