By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR/PURI: With Oppositions, BJP and Congress on Tuesday raising the issue in the State Assembly, Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Chief Administrator Krishan Kumar on Tuesday said the12th century old Lord Jagannath Temple at Puri is likely to open for devotees by the third week of December.
The Temple reopening issue was raised in the Assembly by BJP Chief Whip Mohan Majhi who demanded the immediate opening of the shrine as devotees are denied ‘darshan’ of their deities since March.Congress Chief Whip Taraprasad Bahinipati with folded hands urged Speaker S N Patro to give a ruling on opening all the temples including Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri. Senior BJD MLA Amar Prasad Satpathy said the Government is aware of the religious sentiments of the people. However, one cannot ignore the reality in the field.The Lord’s Darshan has been stopped for pubic since March due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Dr.Kumar, who played a key role behind the most successful COVID-19 Rath Yatra this year that was conducted under the direct supervision of Supreme Court, said a special Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) is being formulated for allowing the devotees to enter the temple.
He said the SOP will deal with the conduct of smooth darshan of devotees adhering to the COVID-19 guidelines. Dr.Kumar said a 3-layer security arrangement will be made at the temple during Lord’s Nagarjuna Besha to be held on Friday.Nobody other than the servitors will be allowed to enter the temple premises. Action will be taken against any kind of violation, he said. This apart, the servitors will not be allowed to carry mobile phones with them inside the temple during Nagarjuna Besha, Chief Administrator said.
