Two duties of pilgrims at Sabrimala; join hands before God and take broom in hands

The 'Punyam Poonkavanam' campaign, an initiative started by IG P Vijayan in 2011 to keep Sabarimala temple and premises clean, was hailed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his 'Mann Ki Baat' session on Sunday.

"One police officer P Vijayan initiated a programme Punyam Poonkavanam and commenced a voluntary campaign of creating awareness on cleanliness. And, he began a tradition that the yatra of devotees will remain incomplete if they do not contribute by performing some physical labour or the other in the cleanliness programme. No one is big or small in this campaign," he said.

"Whenever there is a reference to famous religious places, it is very natural to mention the Sabarimala temple in Kerala. Millions of devotees come to this world famous temple, seeking blessings of Lord Ayyappa. It is a challenge to keep the place cleans, especially when pilgrims throng in huge numbers and when the temple is situated in the midst of hills and forests," said Modi on Sunday.

The initiative, launched in 2011as a remedy to prevent pollution and environmental hazards, has become an annual affair and is set to become a permanent mechanism to ensure cleanliness at the hill shrine.