Odisha: Puri Jagannath temple to now remain open on Sundays
BHUBANESWAR: The Jagannath Temple in Puri will no longer remain closed on Sundays for sanitisation. The shrine administration on Wednesday announced that devotees can now have a darshan of the deities throughout the week. It has also decided to resume the practice of allowing the devotees to partake of the Mahaprasad in Ananda Bazar.
Earlier on January 21, the temple administration had discontinued the mandatory rule for devotees to carry Covid-negative reports to be allowed entry. It had then also decided to keep the temple shut on Sundays for disinfecting its premises in view of the pandemic.
“We have now decided to allow the devotees to have a darshan every day. The sanitization of the temple premises, which used to be carried out on Sundays until now, will henceforth be done thrice a week after the closure of the temple in the night. Devotees can partake of the mahaprasad in Ananda Bazar and other designated places inside the temple by maintaining social distance,” temple’s chief administrator, Krishan Kumar, said.
The temple body has issued a fresh standard operating procedure (SOP) for the devotees. According to the SOP, which will be implemented from Friday, the darshan of the deities will start by 6am and devotees must come wearing face masks. “We request the devotees to maintain adequate physical distance and not touch the idols in the temple. Lighting of diyas (earthen lamps) will be allowed at designated places in the temple. The earlier darshan arrangement, exlusively for Puri residents, from 6am to 7am will be discontinued,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, the existing rules related to the ban on chewing of pan, gutkha and carrying of polythene will be strictly implemented. A fine of Rs 1,000 fine will be imposed for each violation relating to the pan/gutkha ban and Rs 100 for carrying polythene bags in the temple, Kumar said.
The temple, which was shut for devotees since March 20 last year, had reopened on December 23 with only families of servitors being allowed a darshan of the deities till December 25. Devotees from the Puri municipality area were allowed entry from December 26 till 31. While the shrine was closed on January 1 and 2 this year, it was thrown open for devotees, who carried Covid-negative certificates, from January 3 onwards.