By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR/PURI: In a historic step, Jagannath Temple Administration was on Wednesday decided to preserve the 3 gigantic Chariots of Lord Jagannath and his siblings Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra.
Chief Administrator of SJTA) Dr Krishan Kumar said that 3 Chariots on which the deities made a trip to Gundicha temple and returned during the Ratha Jatra this year will be preserved in a museum at Jagannath Ballav in the pilgrim city.
The SJTA Chief Administrator, Dr Kumar, who played a key role in smooth Rath Yatra amid COVID-19 and Supreme Court guideless this year, added a directive has already been issued to shift the chariots to the premises of Jagannath Ballav.
”Nandighosh”, the chariot of Lord Jagannath, is the tallest at 45-feet with 16 wheels, while Lord Balabhadra”s ”Taladhwaja” is 44-feet high with 14 wheels. Their sister Devi Subhadra”s chariot ”Darpadalana” is 43-feet high and has two wheels.
Every year the chariots are dismantled after the Ratha Jatra festival and the wood is used in the temple kitchen. But this year, after a discussion with Biswakarma and Bhoi servitors, the SJTA decided to conserve the three chariots at the museum being constructed at Jagannath Ballav.
SJTA Chief Dr Kumar also said that separate COVID-19 care centres with 30 and 15 bedded respectively will come up for the Temple administration.
