Dissuade pilgrims from discarding clothes in Pampa, HC tells TDB

The Kerala High Court on Friday directed the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) to dissuade Sabarimala pilgrims from discarding clothes in the Pampa after taking bath, as it was polluting the river.

The TDB ought to carry out awareness drives regarding this, including at Pampa. Audio messages pertaining to this must be played in KSRTC buses that ferry pilgrims to the temple. The board must in addition convince pilgrims that this practice was not part of any custom, the court said and reminded that such practices would pollutethe Pampa river. Most such clothes were discarded by pilgrims from other States.

The directive follows photographs submitted by the Special Commissioner. Huge quantities of discarded clothes were being collected from the river banks everyday.