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Kottayam: Around 50,000 people participated in the Ashtami Rohini Vallasadya held at Aranmula Sree Parthasarathy Temple in Pathanamthitta on Friday. After the rituals in the morning, the palliyodams began arriving at the temple ghat by 11.30am, with Melukara palliyodam being the first to be received by officials of Palliyoda Seva Sangham. So far, 570 offering vallasadyas have been booked, of which 414 have been held. The special pass Aranmula sadya and KSRTC budget tourism sadya offerings continue, with the event concluding on Sept 16.
Travancore Devaswom Board president K Jayakumar, who was to inaugurate the event, could not attend due to personal reasons, following which Akkeeraman Kalidasa Bhattathiri lit the inaugural lamp. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Kochi | Silver Rate in Kochi | Bank Holidays in Kochi | Public Holidays in Kochi Stay updated with the latest Kochi news. The boat arrived accompanied by Kathakali costume performances, boys dressed as lord Krishna and a percussion ensemble, and its circumambulation of the temple to the accompaniment of vanchippattu marked the peak of the celebrations. The remaining palliyodams followed in succession. Chengannur NSS taluk union ad hoc committee chairperson R Ajith Kumar served the first dish, followed by Aranmula MLA Abin Varkey, Palliyoda Sevasangham president K V Sambadevan, secretary Prasad Anandabhavan, Ashtami Rohini convener Ajay Gopinath, treasurer Ramesh Malimel, vice-president K S Suresh, among others. A special pandal was arranged on the northern side of the temple for the palliyodam crews’ feast. A separate community feast was also held on the southern side of the temple courtyard. Additional feasts were arranged at Krishnaveni, Panchajanyam and Vinayaka auditoriums outside the temple. Download the TOI App.