Puri Gajapati writes to Odisha government on conduct of Rath Yatra

PURI: Puri Gajapati Maharaj Dibyasingha Deb on Friday wrote to the State Government requesting for an early decision on Rath Yatra even as the Sri Jagannath Temple authorities decided to go ahead with Chandan Yatra as per schedule.  Letter of the Gajapati, chairperson of the temple managing body, assumes importance as the global health crisis has led to an air of uncertainty over the annual sojourn of the Holy Trinity.

Meanwhile, rituals of Chandan Yatra of Lord Jagannath will begin from April 26 on the occasion of Akshaya Tritiya. This was decided in a meeting of Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) and members of various Nijogs of the temple here on Friday. However, the temple administration is yet to decide if boat rides of the deities will be carried out in presence of devotees at the Narendra Pokhari in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic.

During the 21-day-long festival, the representative deity of Lord Jagannath, Madana Mohana, along with consort deities Sridevi and Bhudevi, are carried to the sacred pond where they make trips in gorgeously decorated boats. On their arrival at the pond, the deities are applied sandal wood paste and bathed with aromatic water. The festival draws a large number of devotees.

Currently, repair work of ceremonial boats is underway at the banks of Narendra Pokhari but some servitors say the festival may be organised without participation of the devotees as a precautionary measure to prevent spread of the virus. Senior servitor Ramachandra Dasmahapatra said, Chandan Yatra rituals will be conducted with adherence to the social distancing norms. 

SJTA extends financial aid to servitors
Puri: The Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) on Friday began providing monetary help to servitors of Srimandir to help them overcome financial crisis due to lockdown. Since March 20, the temple has been closed for devotees and sale of ‘Abhada’ suspended at Anand Bazaar. Only daily rituals of the Holy Trinity are being performed. Servitors are badly hit since offerings by devotees, which are their major source of income, have been stopped.

To help them, the temple administration has decided to provide `5000 to 2312 servitors. The money will be directly transferred to their bank accounts.   Servitors who do not have bank accounts will be provided cash at their doorsteps. Similarly, 1844 senior artisans of Puri have been paid `4800 under Chief Minister’s Kalakar Pension scheme.