'Strict action on hotels selling stale food at Sabarimala:TDB

The Travancore Devaswom Board said on Saturday that stringent action would be taken against hotels which sell stale food and charge exorbitant rates from devotees at the Sannidhanam in Sabarimala.

TDB President N Vasu, said health cards would be mandatory for employees of hotels functioning in the locality.

"We have instructed the authorities to take strict action against hotels which sell stale food and also charges exorbitant rates.

Regular inspections will be conducted and we have also made health card a must for employees at the restaurants," he said at a high-level meeting held at the hill shrine.

The Sabarimala temple, which was opened on November 16 for the annual two-month long witnessed a heavy rush of devotees on Saturday, with over 80,000 of them so far trekking up the hill.

Meanwhile, A Sreenivas took charge as the special officer of Sabarimala, as also the second batch of police officials.

As per official records, the temple registered a revenue of over Rs 39 crore till Friday ever since it opened for the annual Mandala-Makaravilakku pooja on November 16.

A Board press release said the revenue earned at this time last year was only Rs 21 crore