Construction of 320 toilets in eight blocks at Sannidhanam and 160 of it in four blocks in Pampa under the PAP has just started and they are not likely to be ready before the season. However, construction of the all important sewage treatment plant at Sannidhanam and developing the sewage system is yet to begin.

Implementation of first phase of the Pampa Action Plan at Sabarimala Sannidhanam and Pampa, the base of the hill, is imperative as the pollution of the river takes place during the pilgrimage season when millions of pilgrims estimated at around 50 to 60 million, trek to the hill shrine every year from mid-Nov to mid-Jan the next year.

Realising the urgent need to put an end to the pollution of the river, the life line for millions of people living down stream in the river basin, during the pilgrimage season the NRCP has included the river Pampa in its national programme about five years ago. The NRCP had approved the project costing around Rs320 crore to be implemented in three phases.

For implementing the first phase of the project, involving a total investment of Rs 18.45 crore, the NRC Directorate under the Ministry of Environment and Forests had accorded administrative approval and sanctioned Rs 12.92 crore (70 per cent Central share of the total cost) in May 2003.

The first phase, as per NRCD schedule, was to be completed by the end of 2006-07. Most of the components of the first phase were to be implemented by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) as the works were to be taken up in Sabarimala and Pampa under its jurisdiction.

"But lack of co-ordination between the Government Departments and the absence of an independent implementation agency could be the reason for its non-implementation," Mr Nair said.

After a four-year wait, what had been implemented as part of the first phase was construction of three check dams with shutters - vented cross bars (VCBs) - across the Pampa and two other streams at an estimated cost of Rs 1 crore, he said.

But, what was urgently needed was the construction of a 3-million litre per day (MLD) sewage treatment plant at Sabarimala and 1.5 MLD treatment plant at Pampa under the PAP project so as to arrest the flow of all kinds of wastes into the river.

On the other hand, the much talked about mega perspective master plan for Sabarimala involving an investment of an estimated Rs25,000 crore, spread over about 45 years, in fact, remained almost a non-starter. There might be constraints for funds if it is not implemented under BOT route, which is viewed by majority of devotees as commercialisation of Sabarimala, a most secular pilgrim centre.

The IL&FS Ecosmart Ltd has prepared the master plan (Perspective: 2050) and it was accepted by the State Government for implementation early this year. However, execution of work as per the plan has yet to acquire momentum, according to official sources.