Bhubaneswar: The annual Rath Yatra in Puri witnessed an unexpected pause on Sunday as the pulling of the Nandighosa chariot—carrying Lord Jagannath—was suspended for the day due to heavy crowding near the chariot cordon. Despite the completion of rituals on time, the overwhelming number of devotees made it difficult to continue the procession safely.
The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) confirmed that the pulling of the chariots will resume on Monday morning at 9:30 AM, following the completion of the Abakash rituals of the deities on their respective chariots.
SJTA Chief Administrator Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee stated that although the ceremonial pulling of Lord Jagannath’s chariot began at 7:45 PM, it was soon halted due to safety concerns. “All rituals were conducted on schedule, but the dense crowd near the chariots created a bottleneck, preventing further movement,” he said.
Earlier in the day, the chariots of Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra also encountered similar challenges. Taladhwaja, the chariot of Lord Balabhadra, came to a halt at Balgandi Chhak, while Darpadalana, the chariot of Devi Subhadra, stopped near the Marichikot Town Police Station. Nandighosa, after a few ceremonial rolls from the Singhadwar, had to be halted for the same reason.
Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan, who was present in Puri, attributed the delay to the record number of devotees attending this year’s Yatra. “The crowd size was enormous, and while rituals were completed on time, the pulling process took longer than expected. We urge devotees to cooperate as chariot pulling will continue tomorrow,” he said.
Despite the delays, the atmosphere in Puri remained devotional and peaceful. The deities continued to bless devotees with darshan from their chariots throughout the day. SJTA, through its official social media handle, extended gratitude to servitors, administrative officials, police, media, and the general public for their support in managing the proceedings.
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