NE NEWS SERVICE
PURI, JUNE 28
To prevent a congregation of people during the return car festival of Lord Jagannath in view of the coronavirus pandemic, the Puri administration announced on Saturday that a curfew will be clamped in the entire district from 10 pm on June 30 to 10 pm on July 2.
The festival, also known as “Bahuda Yatra”, in which Lord Jagannath returns to the Sri Mandir with his divine siblings, will be held on July 1.
All the entry points to Puri will be sealed and no vehicle other than those engaged in the return car festival will be allowed into the temple town during the curfew hours, an official said.
The announcement of curfew in the district comes a day after Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik called upon everyone to adhere to a Supreme Court order and the COVID-19 guidelines to make the return car festival as successful as the Rath Yatra, as the whole world is watching the historic event amid the pandemic.
The chief minister had also emphasised the need for proactive steps to implement the curfew and the lockdown.
The curfew will remain in force throughout the district during the period to ensure smooth conduct of the “Bahuda Yatra”. Movement of vehicles and people will not be allowed during the period, Puri District Collector Balwant Singh said.
Appealing to the people from other parts of the state to refrain from trying to visit Puri to witness the “Bahuda Yatra”, Singh said everyone should abide by the Supreme Court”s directives during the historic festival, which is being held amidst the crisis triggered by COVID-19.
The residents of Puri should refrain from venturing out of their homes to watch the return car festival and people from other parts of the state must not proceed to the seaside pilgrim town. All the devotees, both in Puri and outside, can watch the proceedings on television, the collector said.
The return car festival marks the end of the nine-day Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath and his siblings, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Shubhadra, to the Shree Gundicha Temple.
The Rath Yatra was held amid tight security and a total absence of devotees for the first time in living memory on June 23.
Elaborate security arrangements are being made to ensure smooth and peaceful conduct of the “Bahuda Yatra”, for which police personnel in strength will be deployed, a senior official of the force said.
On June 22, the Supreme Court, while modifying its June 18 stay order on the festival, granted permission for holding the Rath Yatra by a limited number of servitors without public attendance in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The “Bahuda Yatra” will be followed by the “Suna Besa” (gold attire) of the deities on July 2, “Adhara Pana” on July 3 and “Niladri Bije” on July 4. As these festivals too attract a large number of devotees, there will be restrictions on non-essential movement of the public from July 1 to July 4, the collector said.
“I request all to have darshan of the Holy Trinity on television by staying at home,” he said.
All hotels and lodges in the district have been asked not to accommodate tourists and visitors during the four days and take bookings only after the festivals, Singh said.
He said all commercial establishments on Puri’s Grand Road, outside the 13th-century Jagannath temple, will remain closed and a detailed survey will be carried out of the nearby houses, temples, mutts and other religious institutions.
Only the residents of the area will be allowed to stay and if any non-residents or relatives or visitors of the locals are found, action will be taken against them, the collector added.
