Modi has agreed to visit Sabarimala soon: Ayyappa Samajam secy

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit the famous hill shrine of Lord Ayyappa at Sabarimala in Kerala by next month, a senior functionary of Ayyappa Seva Samajam said here today.
On a request from All India President of the Samajam Kishore Kumar Warrier, the Prime Minister has agreed to come to Sabarimala before January 20, the samajam's General Secretary "Erode" N Rajan told reporters here.
He said the samajam had been demanding the Centre to declare Sabarimala as a national holy site and expressed hope that the government would grant the status after Modi's visit.
The samajam, which has 863 branches all over the country, has been providing free food for the devotees thronging the hill shrine, where two-month long annual 'Mandala- Maharavilakku' festival is on now.

He regretted that the Kerala Dewasvom Board, which manages the Ayyappa temple, was not providing enough infrastructure for the pilgrims and alleged that it was functioning with only commercial motive.