Temple collections fall by Rs 45 lakh as devotees fill hundi with paper notes with the message ‘Save Sabarimala’

Kasaragodu: As the Sabarimala temple issue hits a stalemate, despite Supreme Court’s order to allow women of menstruating age to enter the Lord Ayyappa’s hill shrine, devotees are using different ways to stop it from happening.

Recently, the tradtionalist devotees started to put paper slips bearing the writings like ‘Save Sabarimala’, ‘Swamiye Sharanam Ayyappa’ inside the Hundi in the Sabarimala Temple.

After the top court’s order, a campaign was initiated to urged people to not contribute money to the Hundi in all temples, which come under the Devaswam Board. It was alleged that the government is looting the income from the temple.


After four days of the puja in the holy month of Tula, the Sabarimala Hundi’s income has seen a drastic dip as compared to the last year. This year, Lord Ayyappa’s darshan at Sabarimala temple started from October 17.

As compared to the first four days earnings during darshan in 2017, the temple’s revenue had fallen by Rs 44.5 lakh.

On the first day of Ayyappa Darshan, last year’s collection was 8.42 lakh, but this year it dipped to 4.83 lakh, whereas the second day earning is recorded at Rs 19.30 lakh, as compared to Rs 45.59 lakh in last year. The third day earning was Rs 32.3 lakh in 2017 while this year it is only Rs 17.51. Only the fourth day hundi collection could marginally surpass the last year’s revenue by Rs 15,800