Senior police officials and experts are participating in discussions, signaling cross-agency collaboration on the project.

Officials aim to complete preliminary procedures by August, with a possible phased rollout of only critical components in the coming season if full deployment isn’t feasible.

Separately, Devaswom Minister forwarded complaints against a TDB member to the SIT investigating the Sabarimala gold loss case, underscoring the SIT’s authority and denying ministerial interference.

Long-term goals include reducing required police personnel and downscaling the 6,000 daily-wage workforce, though forest department cabling restrictions and a 60-day peak visit window with about 80 lakh visitors pose challenges.

About 80% of Mandala season pilgrims come from outside Kerala, prompting multilingual communication of revised arrangements.

TDB President emphasized that the AI initiative should be treated as an independent official project, though AI recommendations had been discussed previously at the Global Ayyappa Sangam.

Vision Sabarimala envisions a comprehensive safety, sanitation, and service-focused plan validated by the Kerala High Court, including a virtual queue to promote awareness and booking.

The Travancore Devaswom Board will launch an AI-based pilgrim management system at Sabarimala to improve crowd control and safety starting with the upcoming pilgrimage season.

The system will use high-resolution and infrared cameras, sensors, and drones to predict crowd movements, monitor capacity in zones and parking lots in real time, and guide police and security personnel.

AI features include facial recognition to help locate missing pilgrims, including children and the elderly, with the aim of reducing the need for large police deployments over time.

This AI initiative sits within a broader Vision Plan approved by the Kerala High Court and will be complemented by a sanitation protocol embedded in contracts with nearby eateries and restaurants.

The Green Sabarimala project was launched on World Environment Day with a tree-planting drive spearheaded by the Forest Department and partners under the theme 'One Ayyappan, One Tree Sapling.'