Lord Jagannath’s Rath Yatra in Puri starts after SC’s nod without the devotees.
The Supreme Court granted permission to Puri Rath Yatra with some curbs as 800 servitors were allowed to carry out the rituals.
The Supreme Court on Monday reversed its order on June 18 and granted permission to Lord Jagannath’s Puri Rath Yatra with curbs. The apex court, in its order, cited social distancing problems due to the Covid-19 global pandemic and allowed the Rath Yatra to proceed without a public congregation. On Tuesday, the nine-day Rath Yatra festival began without the attendance of devotees; this is a departure from an age-old tradition where devotees in lakhs would gather around the Rath and seek blessings of Lord Jagannath.
Curfew imposed in Puri:
From Monday 9 pm till Wednesday at 2 pm in the Puri district, a rigorous curfew has been imposed to prevent large public gatherings. The Rath and Yatra and customs-proceedings will be broadcasted live on TV channels. More than 800 servitors were allowed to perform the rituals, only after testing negative for the Coronavirus infection. Around 3 am, they started the rituals inside the shrine of Lord Jagannath Temple in Puri, the pulling of the chariots was flagged-off at around noon on Tuesday. The Rath carried Jagannath, Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra amid the boisterous Pahandi procession.
The 3-kilometer annual Rath Yatra will be ridden by the three deities to their birthplace in Gundicha Temple by traveling on the Grand Road. The Supreme Court in its order has also stated that not more than 500 persons are allowed to pull the three chariots and all these people must also test Covid-19 negative. These will mostly include policemen and servitors.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Ramnath Kovind, and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik were among the big names to greet people through social media on the pious occasion of Rath Yatra.
