Puri Jagannath Rath Yatra begins
nBHUBANESWAR: For the first time in its history, the famous Rath Yatra of the Jagannath temple in Puri, Odisha, began on Tuesday morning with priests pulling the three colourful chariots of the presiding deities in the absence of the tens of thousands of devotees who typically throng the town every year for the annul event.
Around 1,500 priests of the iconic 12th century temple milled around the wooden chariots which they started pulling from the main temple to the Gundicha temple amid the beating of cymbals and drums in praise of the Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra.
The pulling of the chariots Nandighosh, Taladwaja and Darpadalana - is the foremost ritual of the festival. It was performed by the priests who had been tested for Covid-19 on Monday.the Supreme Court on Monday allowed the conduct of the Rawth Yatra, recalling its June 18 order that prohibited the event, but laid down strict conditions, including a ban on pubic attendance and the imposition of a curfew in Puri during the festivities.
The erstwhile King of Puri, Gajapati Dibyasingha Deb, who is also the first servitor of the Lord, performed the Chhera Panhara, a ritual sweeping of the chariots, before they were pulled by the priests. “It’s hard to imagine Rath Yatra without devotees on Badadanda (Grand Road). But Lord Jagannath stepped out of temple for the whole universe.” Puri Govardhan Peeth Shankaracharya Nischalananda Saraswati paid obeisance atop the chariots along with his disciples.
Until Monday afternoon, uncertainity clouded the Rath Yatra as a three-judge bench of SC led by chief justice SA Bobde heard dozens of intervention petitions seeking recall of the court’s June 18 order. For a few days, it had seemed that the Rath Yatra would not be held for the first time in 285 years.
Since Tuesday morning, the district administration had disinfected the 2.5 km long road from the main temple to Gundicha temple ahead of the pulling of chariots. From 9 pm Monday, the police had enforced a curfew around the holy town for the next 41 hours. “We have mobilised 50 platoons of forces in Puri with two primary objectives – smooth and incident-free movement / pulling of the chariots from origin to destination and restricting entry of unauthorised persons into the town,” said state director general of police (DGP) Abhay, who goes by one name.
The devotees, who are an intrinsic part of the festival, remained glued to TV sets as Doordarshan telecast the proceedings live. “It’s all the wish of Lord Jagannath. I am happy with the decision of the Supreme Court...,” said Binapani Mallik, a housewife in Bhubaneswar.
On Monday, 1,143 servitors of the temple were tested for Covid-19, of which one tested positive. who was shifted to a hospital.