Puri Jagannath temple to remain closed for public till June 15 due to COVID-19

Keeping in sight the surge of COVID-19 cases in Odisha and also in Puri, the authorities of the temple of Lord Jagannath within the pilgrim town on Sundayannounced that the 12th century shrine would remain out of bounds for the general public till June 15.

Announced that the 12th century shrine would remain out of bounds for the general public till June 15 2021. The famous temple is closed for the devotees since May 5 as a state-wide lockdown was imposed by the Odisha government.

The Shree Jagannatha Temple Administration made the choice to stay the temple closed for people till June 15 at a review meeting chaired by SJTA Chief Administrator Dr Krishan Kumar and attended by Puri Collector Samarth Verma.

The administration of the temple in Puri is under the law department of the government and therefore the SJTA, which is liable for management of the shrine, is headed by a senior IAS officer.

It was also decided at the meeting to review the quality procedure from time to time, keeping in sight the evolving situation.

Though members of the temple won’t be allowed to enter the temple, all the age-old rituals of the deities continue with the assistance of servitors and therefore the temple administration officials, Kumar said.

The spread of COVID-19 among the servitors during these times are going to be detrimental to the observance of daily rituals and annual programmes like ‘Chandan Yatra’, ‘Sanan Yatra’ and ‘Ratha Yatra’, a press release issued by the SJTA said.

Odisha’s COVID-19 caseload on Sunday surged to six ,12,224 after 11,732 more people tested positive for the infection, while 19 fresh fatalities pushed the price to 2,313, a health department official said.

Meanwhile, the Chandan Yatra (sandalwood festival) began on Saturday, adhering to COVID-19 protocols. Construction of chariots for the Rath Yatra begins from the day of the Chandan Yatra.

All the participants of the Chandan Yatra have undergone COVID-19 tests while the carpenters et al. related to chariot construction are going to be kept in isolation till completion of the works, a politician said.