PATHANAMTHITTA: The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has accused the Government of backtracking from its promised support for providing pilgrim facilities in Sabarimala by implementing an approved master plan in the forest areas of the Periyar Tiger Reserve.

Talking to presspersons at Sabarimala on Friday, TDB president G. Raman Nair and the members M. B. Sreekumar and Punalur Madhu alleged that certain vested interests in the Forest Department had been trying to torpedo the proposed Sabarimala development with the patronage of certain ruling party quarters.

They said the department was trying to scuttle the TDB initiative to implement various pollution control schemes prescribed in the Pampa Action Plan.

``The Government has appointed Ecosmart India Limited as consultants to prepare the master plan for Sabarimala and it has already allotted Rs.40 lakhs to the agency for that purpose. It is the duty of the Government to facilitate the implementation of the proposed schemes in a time-bound manner,'' Mr. Raman Nair said.

He alleged that the Government was indifferent towards the attempts to scuttle Sabarimala development by certain vested interests attached to the Forest Department.

He urged the Government to interfere in the matter to facilitate the forest land allotted to the TDB for implementing the proposed Sabarimala development project with a long-term perspective.

He demanded action against those officials who had failed to interfere in the issue when the Forest Department took objection to the TDB initiative to launch the work on certain projects envisaged in the Pampa Action Plan.

Mr. Nair said the TDB was supposed to carry out the projects estimated at Rs.16.5 crores in the first phase of the Pampa Action Plan estimated at a total cost of Rs.18.5 crores.

The TDB authorities said the Board had already moved the Kerala High Court seeking permission to carry out certain development works in Sabarimala as part of the development project.

Devaprasnam planned

Mr. Nair said a Devaprasnam would be held at Sabarimala Sannidhanam during the five-day monthly puja period in the Malayalam month of Edavom that begins on May 15.

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