West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari performs the ‘Chhera Pahanra’ ritual before pulling the chariot rope during the 55th ISKCON Rath Yatra procession, in Kolkata
| Photo Credit: PTI
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday (July 16) participated in Rath Yatra festivities. Several other top Bharatiya Janta Party leaders also joined the festival across the State.
Mr. Adhikari joined the ISKCON devotees in Kolkata’s Albert Road to mark the 55th annual Rath Yatra celebrations of the organisation. He also joined the devotees to pull the rope of the Jagannath chariot, which is a celebrated ritual of the religious event.
Later in the day he also participated in Rath Yatra celebrations in Tamluk and Mecheda in Purba Medinipur district. Mr Adhikari said from the festival in Tamluk that his participation in the temple’s festival has nothing to do with his political ideology, path, or any positions he holds, and attends as a devotee.
“I am grateful to inaugurate the ISKCON Rath Yatra in Kolkata which lakhs of devotees wait for,” Mr. Adhikari said.
Meanwhile, other senior BJP leaders like minister Dilip Ghosh and State president Samik Bhattacharya also participated in multiple Rath Yatra celebrations.
The BJP government in West Bengal is giving Rath Yatra a new makeover handing out ₹5 lakh cash to 60 organisers. “This is for repair work. There are many old Rath Yatras who do not have money for repairs,” Mr. Adhikari said while commenting on the doles.
Previously, former CM Mamata Banerjee was also known to take part in the festivities and had even constructed a Jagannath Temple in Digha, which was a close replica of the Puri’s original Jagannath Dham. This led to severe criticism among various sections of society. However, the outpouring at the new temple remained high as Jagannath remains one of the most celebrated gods in Eastern India.
On Thursday, celebrations were also seen at the Jagannath Temple in Digha. In the evening, Ms Banerjee also wished people for Rath Yatra during a live video on her social media.
Several community Durga Pujas in Kolkata performed their “khuti puja” on this day, a commencement of their upcoming pandal construction before Durga Puja festivities in October.
ISKCON mid meal
During the Rath festivities, Mr Adhikari also said that they have trusted ISKCON with the responsibility of cooking mid-day meals in the government schools of Kolkata. He said ISKCON will start distributing the meals from August 1 in Kolkata, after which they will extend the program to the Nadia district.
“The objective of the school midday meal programme is not merely to provide food but to ensure proper nutrition for children. Providing a good, nutritious meal is extremely important. The students who depend on the midday meal in our schools largely come from middle-class, lower middle-class and economically weaker families. Most children from affluent families do not depend on this scheme. Therefore, nutritious food is essential to address malnutrition,” he said.
The CM further added that this program will have no scope for corruption, which he said was a major issue in mid-day meals during the previous government.
The matter has already reached the Calcutta High Court after a public interest litigation was filed against the issue of removing eggs from the meals and introducing only veg meals. However, during the court proceedings on July 8, the government’s counsel said that no official notification for this shift to ISKCON for mid-day meals has been issued.
Published – July 17, 2026 04:40 am IST
