Digha:

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday incorporated Kolkata’s ISKCON chief in the board of trustees of a Jagannath temple at the coastal town of Digha, one of her most ambitious religious projects of current times.

The move is being interpreted by certain quarters as ‘subtle messaging’ from Mamata Banerjee in the wake of the alleged attacks on ISKCON institutions and monks in Bangladesh.

Announcing a 13-member board of trustees for the upcoming Jagannath Dham project on the shores of the Bay of Bengal in Digha in Purba Medinipur district, the chief minister named Radharamn Das, Vice President of ISKCON Kolkata, as one of the board members.

Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday reviewed the construction of the ‘Chaitanya Jagannath Dham’ project, a temple of Lord Jagannath built in the likeness of the Jagannath Temple in Puri and a host of other temples, and announced its inauguration on the auspicious occasion of ‘Akshay Tritiya’ on April 30 next year.

Radharamn Das, who also doubles up as ISKCON Kolkata spokesperson, accompanied Mamata Banerjee to her visit to the under-construction project and was seen flanking the chief minister while she made her announcements to reporters.

The management board for the project, Mamata Banerjee said, would be headed by the state chief secretary and would include top brass of district police and administration, priests and representatives of the Hindu monastic order.

“I will not be a member of this board,” the chief minister emphasised while preferring to call herself a “volunteer” and stated that an officer of the rank of additional district magistrate would be in charge of overseeing the running of the project and handling the boost in tourism which the project is expected to attract.

Utilising the opportunity to repeat her appeal before the Centre to lend support to the persecuted Hindus in Bangladesh, she said that the Union government must protect the minorities and bring back those willing to return from the violence-hit neighbourhood.

Built on a plot of nearly 22 acres, the Jagannath Dham project has cost the treasury around Rs 250 crore with additional funds required to make the temple fully operational, Mamata Banerjee said.

“Construction of the temple will be over in another three months. The inauguration will take place on April 30, and the process for that will start 48 hours before, on April 28,” she told reporters.

“I must congratulate the HIDCO (an urban planning body under the state government) engineers for the stupendous job they have done. This temple will attract tourists from around the globe. This will remain for thousands of years,” Mamata Banerjee, who was accompanied by Chief Secretary Manoj Pant and DGP Rajeev Kumar, said.

Mamata Banerjee explained that the temple would feature separate guest rooms, store rooms, and shops selling puja items, which would be managed by women from the locality.

The Trinamool Congress supremo, however, was slammed by the state’s opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari for “defying the Constitution” in utilizing public money to construct a religious site.

He also claimed that the work order for the project was issued by the state-run HIDCO to a private firm to build the ‘Jagannath Dham Sanskriti Kendra’ (cultural centre) at Digha and that the documents do not speak about a temple.

“As per the Constitution, the government cannot use money from the exchequer for constructing any institution of a particular religion,” the BJP MLA said.

Claiming that the Trinamool Congress supremo does not have any connection with Hindu organisations, he said that it was only after the Ram Mandir was constructed in Ayodhya that she came up with a similar idea to garner support of the Hindu community in the state.

The BJP leader said that the Puri Jagannath Temple cannot be replicated.

“The Puri temple, which is one of the four dhams across India, cannot be replicated as the other three dhams cannot also be,” he said.

Adhikari also took a dig at Das for “preferring to remain mute and not protest” Banerjee’s announcements which “undermined the Hindu faith”.

He also said that the Kali temple in Kolkata’s Kalighat, near the CM’s residence, was being renovated by a private company’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds.

“The chief minister should not claim credit for everything,” he said.

Work for the project, conceived and announced by Banerjee in 2019, began in the post-Covid phase of 2022 and has admittedly remained close to the chief minister’s heart.

Unwilling to draw comparisons with the Puri Temple of Lord Jagannath, Banerjee said, “That temple was built by kings. This is built by the government. It will have adequate facilities for priests and visitors. Women from self-help groups would be allowed to undertake business activities at the site,” she said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Puri, Odisha:

The US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti, visited Lord Jagannath temple in Odisha’s Puri, along with his family to offer prayers on Saturday.

Expressing happiness on his visit, Garcetti said that he was excited to share this with my family.

“As a pilgrim, as a tourist–it’s a beautiful place to come. I can feel the power of this place, I can see the beauty of this place. I am excited to share this with my family…” the US envoy told the media.

“I am trying to understand India’s contribution to the world’s civilisation…” he said.

Mahaprabhu Shri Jagannath, along with sister Devi Subhadra and elder brother Mahaprabhu Shri Balabhadra, are worshipped in Puri (the Purusottama Kshetra).

Visited the incredible Jagannath Temple in Puri—a nearly 1000-year-old marvel by the Bay of Bengal. Watching priests climb the 65-meter tower for the nightly flag change was truly breathtaking. The streets of Puri with artists preparing for Durga Puja, captures the vibrant spirit… pic.twitter.com/9bEi3Rhver

— U.S. Ambassador Eric Garcetti (@USAmbIndia) September 28, 2024

Though no changes have been made in the temple, the area within the 75-meter corridor of the boundary wall of the Jagannath temple has been developed.

Jagannath Temple is one of the four Dhammas that every Hindu is advised to visit.

The main temple of Shri Jagannath is an impressive and amazing structure constructed in Kalinga architecture.

There are so many festivals of Sri Jagannath during the year observed in Puri, which are Snana Yatra, Netrotsava, Ratha Yatra (car festival), Sayan Ekadasi, Chitalagi Amabasya, Srikrushna Janma, Dussehra, etc. The most important festivals are the world-famous Rath Yatra (Car Festival) and Bahuda Yatra.

A large crowd is gathered to witness Mahaprabhu Shri Jagannath during this festival.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Puri:

The ‘Ratna Bhandar’ (treasure trove) of the Shri Jagannath Temple has finally been opened after more than four decades on Sunday.

The Ratna Bhandar of the Shri Jagannath Temple was opened following Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) issued by the Odisha government. On Saturday, the Odisha government gave approval for the opening of the Ratna Bhandar after carrying out the inventorization of valuables, including pieces of jewellery stored there.

To commemorate this occasion, the Office of the Chief Minister of Odisha, taking to X, said, “Jai Jagannath Oh Lord! You are rhythmic. The whole world is oppressed by your desire. You are the heartbeat of the orthodox nation… The four doors of the temple were first opened at your will. Today, after 46 years of your will, the gem was opened with a great purpose…I strongly believe that this great work will be successful…”

Special boxes were also brought to Shri Jagannath Temple ahead of the re-opening of ‘Ratna Bhandar’ (Treasure Trove) today.

Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Chief Arabinda Padhee says, “Odisha government has approved the SOP for opening the Ratna Bhandar. As per the decision, today the Ratna Bhandar is being opened as per set guidelines. Authorised representatives from the various ‘sewa’ groups, officials from the ASI, representatives of Shri Gajapati Maharaj and others would be there. The entire proceedings will be video recorded for our records, not for publicity and will be strictly confidential.”

He further stated that there will be three steps in SOPs to be followed for the opening and inventorization of the valuables in the Ratna Bhandar.

“There are three steps to the SOP: The first is the opening of the outer ratna bhandar. For the inner Ratna Bhandar, there is another set of guidelines. There is also a temporary, strong room… Once the shift from Ratna Bhandar to the strong room has been made, we will inventory the valuables. We seek the blessings of Mahaprabhu that the Ratna Bhandar gets opened easily, and the subsequent steps will follow,” Padhee said.

The ‘Ratna Bhandar’ (Treasure Trobe) of the Lord Jagannath Temple in Puri was set to be opened at 1:28 pm on Sunday, following SOPs issued by the state government.

Speaking on this, Inspection Committee Chairman Justice Biswanath Rath said, “As per the discussion in the meeting and the suggestions of the ‘Purohits’ and the ‘mukti mandap’, the right time for the opening of the Ratna Bhandar is 1:28 pm.”

He further said that the process will be quite challenging since it is still unknown to them about the position of the Ratna Bhandar since it was last opened in 1985.

“Today we convened a meeting in which we decided to go ahead with the opening and taking care of the ornaments… The process will be carried out with two sets of video recordings and there will be two certifications… It will be a challenge since we do not know the position inside since it last opened in 1985… We’ll open the locks today, in any case,” Justice Rath said.

Speaking on the re-opening of the Ratna Bhandar, Odisha Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan said that the inventory work will take place in the presence of a representative from the Reserve Bank of India and a digital catalogue will be made after the counting is done.

“We had requested the involvement of the Reserve Bank of India in this and a representative of the Reserve Bank of India will be included in it… After counting the ornaments, we will create a digital catalogue, which will include photographs, their weight and other things like their quality. A digital catalogueue will be created with all the things; the digital catalogueue will be a reference document,” he said.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) will be doing repair works in the Ratna Bhandar, which also looks after the maintenance of the 12th century shrine. The Treasury was last opened in 1978.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

The globally renowned Jagannatha Temple in Puri is once again in the spotlight, with the Congress party pushing for the reopening of all four temple gates. The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) has announced a rally on October 16 in Puri. The primary purpose of this rally is to advocate for the reopening of all four gates of the Jagannath Temple, allowing devotees to access the sacred site. OPCC president Sarat Pattanayak emphasised the temple’s significance as a destination for devotees from all over India and beyond.

“The number of devotees will increase during the holy Odia month of Kartik, which begins on October 29. Respecting the demands of Jagannath lovers, all four gates of the temple should be reopened for public immediately,” he demanded.

The party will submit a memorandum to the chief administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) in this regard, he said.

In a statement in the state assembly during the recently concluded monsoon session, Law Minister Jagannath Saraka said entry of devotees to the temple through the four gates has been closed since March 20, 2020, due to COVID restrictions.

“As the Srimandir Parikrama project is still underway, three gates cannot be opened for devotees,” he had said.

Apart from the Singhadwar (Lions Gate), the government has opened the Paschim Dwar (west gate) only for Puri residents to perform daily rituals.

With the temple administration in the news once again, it’s worth exploring the significant cultural, religious, and historical importance it holds for the people of Odisha and India. This revered temple is dedicated to Lord Jagannath, a prominent incarnation of Lord Vishnu in Hinduism, and it plays a central role in the religious and cultural heritage of the region and the nation.

It is one of the fourpilgrimage sites (Char Dham) and is visited by millions of devotees each year. The main deity in the temple is a wooden idol of Jagannath, which is said to be over 1,000 years old. The idol is flanked by the idols of his brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra.

The present-day structure of the Jagannath Temple is believed to have been built in the 12th century by King Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva.

Rath Yatra:

The Jagannath Temple is known for its unique Rath Yatra festival, which is held every year. During the Rath Yatra, the idols of Jagannath, Balabhadra, and Subhadra are placed on three giant chariots and pulled through the streets of Puri by millions of devotees. The Rath Yatra is one of the largest religious festivals in the world.

The Jagannath Temple is a place of great religious and cultural significance. It is a place where people from all walks of life come together to worship and celebrate their faith. It is also a place where people can learn about Hindu culture and tradition.

The temple architecture:

According to the official website, the temple of Lord Shree Jagannatha is about 214 feet and 8 inches high from the road level. The entire temple premises are enclosed by two big concentric walls. The outer wall is known as ‘Meghanada Prachira’ (665 ft. x 640 ft.), and the inner wall is known as ‘Kurma Prachira’ (420 ft. x 315 ft.). The height of the outer walls varies from 20 feet to 24 feet. There are four gates in the outer enclosure. The eastern entrance is known as Singha Dwara’, or the Lion’s Gate.

The entrances on the southern, western, and northern sides of the outer enclosure are known as Aswadwara (South Gate). “Vyaghra Dwara’ (West Gate) and Hastidwara (North Gate), respectively, have hundreds of subsidiary shrines and Mandapas (elevated platforms) inside the temple premises. Two gardens, namely ‘Koili Baikuntha’ and ‘Nilachala Upabana”, seven wells, Ananda Bazara, the kitchen, and the holy banyan tree (Kalpabata), are also inside the temple premises.