This pilgrim centre sees at least 10 million devotees flood to Ayyappan temple each year. In this scenario, health becomes a serious issue for those travelling to temple towns. Now, the Central government will be setting up a telemedicine centre at Sabarimala. This will be the first temple town to get a telemedicine centre.
A report in Malayala Manorama states that telemedicine centres will also come up at Gangothri, Yamunothri, Kedarnath, Badrinath and Amarnath after this. The union government is setting up these telemedicine centres in association with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The telemedicine centres will be linked through satellites to speciality hospitals. The satellites will be those of ISRO's. The initiative is to provide medical care for pilgrims and ensure they receive the best care as well.
Lakhs of people go to temple towns during specific seasons and the variation in climate and other factors often causes medical emergencies. These telemedicine centres will help specialist doctors diagnose an issue and treat the patient without having to meet them.
The report adds that the preliminary work for the telemedicine centre at Sabarimala has begun at Pampa.
