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Pamba, Oct 22 (IANS) On her maiden visit to Kerala’s famous Sabarimala temple, President Draupadi Murmu on Wednesday offered prayers before the deity after reaching the foothills of the temple town of Pamba by road and then climbing the hill.
After reaching Pamba, he participated in the rituals associated with preparing the sacred prasad bundle (Irumudikettu) at the Pamba Ganapathy temple.
After a while, she was wearing a black saree with gold border and Irumudikettu on her head.
She then boarded a special Gurkha jeep, bypassing the regular process when pilgrims climb the hill, which usually takes an hour.
His convoy included five other vehicles, which went up the hill on Swami Ayyappan Concrete Road and reached the summit.
The President was received at Kodimaram Chuvadu (Flag Chowki area) by Chief Priest Tantri Kantar Mahesh Mohanar, who welcomed him with the Poornakumbham ritual.
Then, President Murmu climbed the sacred 18 steps carrying the Irumudikettu. Midway she stopped for a few seconds on a staircase.
She was seen immersed in prayer, standing in front of the deity with one hand on the Irumudikettu on her head and the other on her chest.
Then the chief priest asked him to offer the bundle on the steps of the sanctum sanctorum. Those who were with him also did the same with their gifts. The chief priest prayed inside the temple, came out and offered him the sacred ‘Prasadam’. Then he applied sacred sandalwood paste on his forehead.
The President stood before the Lord, prayed for some time and then walked around the temple. After darshan, she reached the guest house at Sannidhanam to rest. She will return to Thiruvananthapuram by evening.
President Murmu became the second President to offer prayers at the temple after VV Giri visited the temple five decades ago.
Earlier in the day, President Murmu’s travel plans changed due to bad weather and after taking a helicopter from the state capital, she landed at a stadium in Konni’s Primadome.
The earlier planned destination was that the helicopter would land at Nilakkal, but due to bad weather, it landed at Pramadome.
Also, unlike earlier plans, Kerala Governor Rajendra V. Arlekar was not on the helicopter; Instead, it was State Devaswom Minister VN Vasavan who accompanied President Murmu.
He was welcomed by local MP Anto Antony, MLAs and high ranking officials at the Pradomome. From Pradomome his convoy moved towards Pamba.
Incidentally, the temple will remain closed for all other pilgrims during the President’s visit and will be opened after his departure from Sabarimala.
–IANS
SG/DPB