Puri Temple to place Rath Yatra chariots on display
Bhubaneswar: The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has decided to place the three chariots of Rath Yatra on display within the premises of Jagannath Ballav mutt in Puri. A plan is being prepared for proper conservation and maintenance of the chariots.
After Rath Yatra every year, the chariots are dismantled. While the wheels and some other parts are auctioned, the remaining parts are used as firewood in the Jagannath Temple’s kitchen.
The chariots made for Rath Yatra this year have not been dismantled yet. However, the temple administration is yet to take a call on whether it would put them up for display.
“We have just initiated a discussion with experts, including carpenters, servitors and engineers. We have to devise a plan for the maintenance of the chariots. It will take some time,” SJTA chief administrator Krishan Kumar said.
Jagannath Ballav mutt, which is spread over 42 acres, is nearly 500 metres from Jagannath temple. The mutt premises are being developed by the state government under the Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture (ABADHA) scheme.
Carpenters who have been part of chariot work said the temple administration should construct three new chariots inside the mutt for public display. “Tradition does not allow us to pull the chariots again from in front of the Jagannath Temple to another place (Jagannath Ballav mutt). Once the Rath Yatra is completed, the chariots should not be moved; they should be dismantled,” chief carpenter of Jagannath’s Nandighosh chariot, Bijay Mahapatra, said.
He said the chariots are built in such a manner that the dismantled wooden components cannot be reused or fixed again. “We can reuse only the wheels. The only alternative left for the temple administration is to construct new chariots inside the Jagannath Ballav mutt,” Mahapatra said.
Every year, nearly 1,000 trees of different species are felled for 13,000 cubic feet of wood for making of the three chariots of the deities — Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra.