Bhubaneswar: Today is Mahashivratri and devotees are thronging Shiva temples in Odisha in alrge numbers.
In Ekamra Kshetra in Bhubaneswar, devotees queued up at the Lingaraj Temple through a 200-metre barricade for darshan of the Lord. To maintain law and order, 30 platoons of police have been deployed in and around the temple.
The Simhadwara and the main temple are decked up with 20 varieties of flowers.
The Mahadeep will be raised atop the temple at 10 pm.
In Puri also, devotees are thronging the Shri Loknath Temple. This year, the Jagat Mangala Jagara Committee has put up a massive Mahadipa, 6 feet and 12 feet in height with 400 litres of ghee atop the temple.
The Mahadeep will be lighted at 3 am.
In Cuttack, devotees started coming to the famous Dhabaleswar Temple in the middle of Mahanadi river at 4 am. The servitors prepare a special bhog ‘Mandua’ and distribute it among the devotees. The Mahadeep here will be raised at 1 am.
In Dhenkanal, there is a heavy rush of devotees to Kapilas for the darshan of Lord Chandrasekhar. The Mahadeep will be raised at 4 am.
In Bhadrak, the district administration has made elaborate arrangements for the smooth darshan of Lord Baba Akhandalamani at Aradi on the bank of Baitarani Temple. To ensure that devotees are ferried safely, more boats have been requisitioned while a team of ODRAF and Fire Services personnel have been deployed.
The Mahadeep here will be raised at 5 am.