The Odisha government has roped in IIT-Bhubaneswar to introduce a queue management system at the Jagannath Temple in Puri, including setting up wooden ramps for a clearer view of the deities, law minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said on Tuesday.
One person died and many others fell ill in a temporary crowd surge during the Rath Yatra celebrations in Odisha's Puri on Thursday, official sources said.
For the Jagannath Temple in Puri, the timing of Rath Yatra is a matter of scriptural injunction rather than convenience.
Around 70 people were undergoing treatment at the District Headquarters Hospital in Puri, with nine reported to be in critical condition, an official said.
Embroiled in a controversy over his 'slip of the tongue' on Lord Jagannath, Bharatiya Janata Party leader and party's Puri Lok Sabha candidate Sambit Patra apologised and announced he will undertake penance by observing fast for three days from Tuesday after being criticised from different quarters.
A Shree Jagannath Temple Administration official said devotees will be required to wear "decent clothes" to enter the shrine.
'I appeal to the BJP to keep the Lord above any political discourse.'
Chief Secretary A K Tripathy and Director General of Police (DGP) Abhay rushed to the pilgrim town to make the necessary arrangements. "The DGP and I are rushing to Puri to take stock of the situation as per the direction of the chief minister. We will camp there," Tripathy said.
Chants of 'Jai Jagannath' rent the air all over as the news about the Supreme Court giving its nod for holding the world famous car festival in the pilgrim town reached the state bringing cheers among people, irrespective of caste, creed and religion.
