Puri Jagannath Temple: Ahead of Rath Yatra, chariots pulled from Rathakhala to Singhadwar

The three chariots — Nandighosh of Lord Jagannath, Taladwaj of Lord Balabhadra and Dwarpadalan of Devi Subhadra were parked in front of the ‘Singhadwar’ (Lion’s Gate or main gate) of the temple to take the deities to Shree Gundicha Temple on Tuesday. 

On the occasion of ‘Nabajouban Darshan’ at the Puri Srimandir on Monday, thousands of devotees witnessed the reappearance of sibling deities..

About 7,000 devotees who purchased tickets got the opportunity to enter the temple for the Nabajouban Darshan, Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) chief administrator Ranjan Kumar Das said.

‘Nabajouban Darshan’ means youthful appearance of deities, who were behind the doors for 15 days, called ‘Anasara’ (quarantine), after ‘Snana Purnima’.

According to mythology the deities fall ill due to excess bathing on ‘Snana Purnima’ and therefore remain indoors.

Das said that the devotees waiting to have darshan of the deities faced no problems either inside or outside the temple due to special arrangements made for them.

The temple is expecting a congregation of around 10 lakh people in Puri on Tuesday, when the chariots of Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath are pulled till the Shree Gundicha temple, Das said.

As many as 180 platoons (1 platoon comprises 30 personnel) of security forces have been deployed in Puri, said transport commissioner Amitabh Thakur.

The town has been divided into different zones and sections for smooth traffic management, Thakur also said.

A Coast Guard helicopter has also been pressed into service for beach patrolling. Interceptor boats will be stationed at Paradip for any contingency, till July 2, a senior police officer said.

During the festival, total 125 special trains will travel to Puri. 

(With inputs from agencies)

Updated: 20 Jun 2023, 01:36 AM IST