Constantly changing decisions leave Guruvayur devotees confused

Constantly changing decisions leave Guruvayur devotees confused

Thrissur: Decisions that keep changing daily are leaving the devotees visiting or planning to visit the Guruvayur temple confused.

On Tuesday, it was announced that 1,500 people who book online, besides locals and temple employees, will be allowed to enter the chuttambalam (the square sanctum sanctorum) area to perform darshan and make offerings except 'choroonu' (a ceremony in which an infant eats rice for the first time).

However, in an order issued by the collector on Wednesday, the directions were different. It said up to 2,000 people can visit the temple daily. But everyone should possess a COVID-negative certificate. This is the first time that a COVID-negative certificate has been made mandatory for visiting the temple.

The other direction is that only 25 weddings should be allowed per day at the temple. Every member of each wedding party should carry a COVID-negative certificate. The COVID-negative certificate has been made mandatory even for shopkeepers in and around the temple area.

On Wednesday, 32 weddings were booked. Eight weddings were allowed at the temple on Wednesday despite the order being issued late on Tuesday.

Many weddings have been booked for the next few days. The Devaswom will find it a problem to decide on a method to pick and allow only 25 weddings per day from among the many bookings.

The Devaswom and devotees are of the opinion that the new directions are impractical. Chairman K B Mohandas said that the Devaswom will send a letter to the Collector asking him to reconsider the decisions.

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