The chariot journey of Lord Jagannath will be taken out today in Puri, Odisha. The administration is gearing up about the program and security system is on high alert. Millions of devotees from India and abroad are expected to be involved here. The Rath Yatra will start at 4 pm. Before that the law and law will start from morning.
Arvind Padhi, the chief administrator of Shri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), said, “With the grace of Mahaprabhu Sreejgannath, there has been complete preparation to conduct the Rath Yatra peacefully on Friday. We are getting full support of servants and all arrangements are complete.
The work of pulling the chariots of the three siblings Lord Balabhadra, Goddess Subhadra and Lord Jagannath will start at 4 pm after the completion of all the rituals. Millions of devotees from India and abroad are reaching Puri.
According to police sources, by Thursday evening, about one lakh people had reached Puri. Some of them also gained the privilege of ‘Navayuvan Darshan’, in which the gods are seen for the first time after bathing rituals. Public darshans were stopped after the bathing ritual on 11 June. It is believed that God becomes unwell after bathing and he is kept in ‘Donor Ghar’ (separation room) for two weeks.
What is the entire day program today?
The Sinhwar of the temple was opened in Brahma Muhurta. After that Lord Jagannath was awakened. Mangala Aarti took place first. After that preparations for the Rath Yatra started. God will be offered khichdi. In the afternoon, God will be removed from the sanctum sanctorum and brought to the chariot. After riding on the chariot, there will be a big makeup of God. The makeup will end at two and a half in the afternoon. After that, Gajapati Maharaj of Odisha will sow chariot with a gold broom. It is considered a symbol of the beginning of the journey. The chariot will move forward for the journey from 4 pm.
Actually, Mahaprabhu Jagannath was ill on 11 June since Dev Snan Purnima. He was treated for more than two weeks i.e. 15 days. Meanwhile, Mahaprabhu’s darshan was closed. Now darshan will start from today.
What are the preparations?
Odisha DGP YB Khurania said that Puri city has been converted into a fort to control the crowd. Around 10,000 security personnel will handle the front, including 8 central armed forces companies.
For the first time this year, an Integrated Command and Control Center has been established, from where the entire festival will be closely monitored. More than 275 AI competent CCTV cameras have been installed on Puri and Konark routes. NSG snipers have also been deployed in front of the temple on Grand Road. Apart from this, drone, bomb disposal squad, dog squad, Marine Police, Coast Guard and Navy have also been kept ready.
The Meteorological Department has predicted thunderstorms and winds at a speed of 30-40 kmph in several districts including Puri on Friday.
Indian Railways are running 365 special trains to transport devotees. The Odisha government has run around 800 buses from different districts.
What is the preparations for the Rath Yatra in Ahmedabad?
Around 23,884 security personnel will be deployed in the 148th Jagannath Rath Yatra to be held on Friday in Ahmedabad, the capital of Gujarat. The special thing is that for the first time Artificial Intelligence based monitoring system is being used to prevent incidents like stampede.
AI based software will get live feed from CCTV cameras and drones, which it will analyze and inform the police control room about the crowd conditions, number and potential risk. This system will give immediate information in congestion, fire and other emergency situations.
Vehicles adorned with GPS tracking system will be monitored on the travel route. During the visit, 4500 policemen will walk with the journey and 1931 traffic policemen will organize the route. The security system includes the local police, the State Reserve Police (SRP), the Chetak Commandos, and the Rapid Action Force. 25 watch towers have been built with 2872 body cameras, 41 drones, and 96 surveillance cameras.
The journey will start from the Sreejgannath temple in Jamalpur, 400 years old and will return to the temple at 8 pm. According to tradition, the Khalasi community will draw the chariot. The journey will include 18 elephants, 100 trucks and 30 arena.
Special preparations for Rath Yatra in Bengal also
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday reviewed the preparations for the Rath Yatra at the newly constructed Sreejgannath Temple in Digha. He inspected the three chariots and 1 km journey after a high level meeting with Digha-Shankarpur Development Authority (DSDA), police and ISKCON Sadhus.
The entire city is decorated with the temple-theme cutouts and lights manufactured by the artists of Chandannagar. There are saffron flags and banners on the 180 km route from Kolkata to Digha. So far, 30 lakh devotees have visited the temple. There is a possibility of crowds of millions in the Rath Yatra. According to ISKCON Vice President Radharaman Das, the Chief Minister will participate in pulling the chariot on 27 June.
Mamta Banerjee told the media that the three chariots will be taken out at 2:30 pm on Friday and the journey will be completed by 4 pm. Pooja will start from Thursday evening and preparations to draw the chariot will start at 8:30 am on Friday.
This time, in view of security, devotees will not be allowed to hit the road to draw a rope of the chariot. People will be able to touch the rope from behind the barricades.