Travancore Devaswom Board
Statutory board · Nanthancode, Kawdiar, Thiruvananthapuram
The Travancore Devaswom Board runs the Hindu temples of the former princely state of Travancore, which the Maharaja had administered until the 1949 covenant that merged Travancore and Cochin. The Travancore-Cochin Hindu Religious Institutions Act of 1950 made it an autonomous statutory body. Its temples run from Thiruvananthapuram in the south to Ernakulam district in the north, and are organised in local groups such as Thiruvalla, Vaikom and Punalur. For pilgrims it matters most as the body that runs Sabarimala, with its virtual queue, base camps at Nilakkal and Pamba, and free annadanam. It also runs famous temples such as Vaikom, Ettumanoor, Ambalappuzha, Aranmula and Chettikulangara.
How it is run
A President and two members chosen under the 1950 Act by the Hindu members of the Kerala Council of Ministers and the Hindu MLAs; a Devaswom Commissioner and Secretary run the office. K. Jayakumar, a former Kerala Chief Secretary, became President in November 2025 and was still in office in September 2026.
Tips for pilgrims
- A Sabarimala darshan slot is mandatory. Book it on sabarimalaonline.org. In the 2025-26 season online slots were capped at 70,000 a day, with up to 20,000 real-time bookings at Vandiperiyar, Erumely, Nilakkal and Pamba.
- Keep your virtual-queue booking ID. The Board treats it as the basic document for its Sabarimala pilgrim insurance cover.
- Book poojas, vazhipadu and Sabarimala accommodation separately on onlinetdb.com. In 2025 the season's e-booking opened in early November.
- Check the Sabarimala temple calendar on the TDB site before you travel. The shrine opens only for the Mandala-Makaravilakku season and on specific days each Malayalam month.
Temples it runs
- Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple – Sabarimala, Pathanamthitta
- Achankovil Sree Dharma Sastha Temple – Achankovil, Kollam
- Aluva Mahadeva Temple – Aluva Manappuram, Ernakulam
- Ambalappuzha Sree Krishna Swamy Temple – Ambalappuzha, Alappuzha
- Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple – Aranmula, Pathanamthitta
- Aryankavu Sastha Temple – Aryankavu, Kollam
- Chengannur Mahadeva Temple – Chengannur, Alappuzha
- Chettikulangara Devi Temple – Chettikulangara, Mavelikkara, Alappuzha
- Erumely Sree Dharmasastha Temple – Erumely, Kottayam
- Ettumanoor Mahadevar Temple – Ettumanoor, Kottayam
- Haripad Sree Subrahmanya Swamy Temple – Haripad, Alappuzha
- Janardanaswamy Temple – Varkala, Thiruvananthapuram
- Kaviyoor Mahadevar Temple – Kaviyoor, Pathanamthitta
- Kottarakkara Sree Mahaganapathi Temple – Kottarakkara, Kollam
- Kulathupuzha Sastha Temple – Kulathupuzha, Kollam
- Malayalappuzha Devi Temple – Malayalappuzha, Pathanamthitta
- Nilakkal Sree Mahadeva Temple – Nilakkal, Pathanamthitta
- Pandalam Valiyakoikkal Temple – Pandalam, Pathanamthitta
- Sarkaradevi Temple – Sarkara, Chirayinkeezhu, Thiruvananthapuram
- Sreekanteswaram Mahadeva Temple – Sreekanteswaram, Thiruvananthapuram
- Sreevallabha Temple – Thiruvalla, Pathanamthitta
- Thirunakkara Sree Mahadevar Temple – Kottayam town
- Thiruvallam Sree Parasurama Temple – Thiruvallam, Thiruvananthapuram
- Thiruvanvandoor Mahavishnu Temple – Thiruvanvandoor, Chengannur, Alappuzha
- Thrichittatt Maha Vishnu Temple – Chengannur, Alappuzha
- Thrikkadavoor Sree Mahadeva Temple – Thrikkadavoor, Kollam
- Thrikkakara Vamanamoorthy Temple – Thrikkakara, Ernakulam
- Vaikom Mahadeva Temple – Vaikom, Kottayam