Kochi: The exponential increase in the number of devotees visiting Sabarimala every pilgrimage season had put cops on their heels when it comes to crowd management. But this time around, technology has come in handy for the Kerala Police.
The 'Safe Sabarimala' mobile app introduced over a month ago and the bringing the entire stretch from Chalakayam Toll Gate to Panditavalam under CCTV coverage have resulted in fewer complaints being lodged.
"The mobile app helped in better crowd management as it acted as the bridge between devotees and the cops. The app provides services such as missing person alerts, lost-and-found service, complaint submission, navigation assistance and assistance for medical support among others. There were fewer complaints so far this season," said R. Pratapan Nair, assistant special officer, Sannidhanam.
The mobile application also was a hit among pilgrims and saw nearly 5,000 downloads in the last one month. The app, which can be downloaded on Android mobiles, provides information about queue position, parking position, parking instructions, weather updates and Sannidhanam and temple timings.
"We've also brought the entire stretch from Toll Gate to Pandithavalam (Sannidanam) under CCTV scrutiny by setting up an additional 35 CCTVs this season, besides the existing 40. This enabled us to continuously monitor the situation from the Pampa control room, enabling prompt actions. For instance the pilgrims will be restricted at Pamba itself upon long queue at Sannidhanam," said K.S. Vijayan, Circle Inspector, Pamba.
Another issue the cops faced was the child pilgrims going missing in the heavy rush. "Often language and other factors mean these lost children are not able to communicate coherently with the officials," he said. The Kerala Police this year tied up with telecom operator Vodafone to tackle the issue. An RFID band is hung on the neck of children below 14 years of age with the contact details of the guardian embedded in it. This will help trace a child's location upon him/ her going missing.
