BARIPADA: Rituals at Haribaldev Jew temple, considered Dwitiya Sreekhetra, were aired live on social media channels by the district administration.
Lakhs of devotees from across northern Odisha districts and neighbouring States turned up to witness the Rath Yatra. Early in the morning, rituals like ‘Surya puja’, ‘abakash’, ‘Ratha pratistha’ and ‘cherra pahanra’ were performed atop the three chariots at 4.30 pm. Then, the deities were brought outside the temple to the chariots in ‘pahandi bije’ ritual amid beating of drums at around 7 pm.
Tribals from across the district participated in the festival and showcased folk dance forms during the ‘pahandi bije’. Members of the royal family Maharaja Prabin Chandra Bhanjdeo and his wife Maharani Rajalaxmi Bhanjdeo besides Collector Vineet Bhardwaj were present during the ritual.
Rath Yatra here is a three-day affair. On Friday, Taladhwaja of Lord Balabhadra will be pulled first followed by Devidalana of Devi Subhadra. Pulling of Devidalana will be stopped in the evening and resumed the next day. On Saturday, both Devidalana and Nandighosa of Lord Jagannath will be pulled to Gundicha temple by devotees.
This year, the district administration decided to broadcast the Rath Yatra live on Twitter, Facebook and Youtube in an attempt to showcase the popular festival of Dwitiya Sreekhetra for the people staying outside Mayurbhanj, said Sub-Collector Dibya Jyoti Parida.
SP Awinash Kumar said no untoward incident was reported on Thursday and more security personnel will be deployed on Friday when pulling of chariots would begin.