The Yatri Nivas at Srirangam has been catering to the needs of pilgrims and devotees and has been registering full occupancy during peak period.
The absence of a full-fledged accommodation facility has been a major handicap at Srirangam for long and the opening of the facility has gone down well with the pilgrims. The largest beneficiaries are those who are on a package tour to pilgrim centres such as Rameswaram, Kumbakonam, and other important centres in the southern districts.
Located at Panchakarai on the banks of the Kollidam, the yatri nivas provides an ambience of a resort and can accommodate 1,000 pilgrims at a given time. It has 612 single rooms, 98 double-rooms, and 24 family cottages.
Built at an estimate of Rs. 47.08 crore, it provides other amenities such as restaurant, tonsure house, rest-room for drivers, laundry, and a shopping complex with adequate parking area. The yatri nivas had been catering to the needs of different sections of society. “While pilgrims in groups from distant destinations prefer the single room for Rs.100 a day, VVIPs opt for the family cottages,” says an official source. The rental charge for the double room is Rs. 500; double-room air-conditioned Rs. 750, and air-conditioned cottages Rs. 1,750. The rooms can be booked online.
The location of the yatri nivas has been facilitating pilgrims to visit not only the Srirangam Sri Ranganathaswamy temple but also other important temples — Sri Jambukeswarar temple in Tiruvanaikovil on the east, Sri Samayapuram Sri Mariamman temple on the north, and Sri Prasanna Venkatachalapathy temple in Gunaseelam on the west.
Based on the recommendation of the pilgrims, the temple authorities have planned to provide additional facilities and services on the premises of the yatri nivas.
“To start with, we have planned to provide Automated Teller Machine (ATM) service on the premises and one of the banks has come forward to provide the same shortly,” says the source.
