Odisha Law Minister Refutes ‘Barricade Breaking’ Reports As 5L Devotees Visit Puri Jagannath Temple On New Year

Bhubaneswar: Law Minister Prithivarj Harirchandan on Wednesday denied media reports about devotees breaking security barricades put up for crowd management in front of Shree Jagannath Temple in Odisha’s Puri town, creating a stampede-like situation.

“Some devotees expressed displeasure after a couple of persons tried to squeeze their way through the barricades and this had led to a chaotic scene. Police immediately intervened and brought the situation under control. People had a hassle-free darshan of the sibling deities all through the day and also yesterday. We are expecting heavy rush during the next few days,” he told reporters.

The Puri administration has providing hourly reports to the Law Department, he said.

The Law Minister further informed that the footfall of devotees in Puri on New Year was more than last year because of which the district administration had to go with the queue system. The shed was prepared for devotees till Market Chhak, but the rush this year extended till Balgandi Chhak, he said.

“The government is taking all measures for smooth darshan of the deities. The Opposition is trying to find faults due to political reasons but these will not cannot affect us,” he said.

He added that technology will be used to ensure smooth darshan at the 12th-century shrine in the coming days.

Keeping in mind the huge rush, the temple opened around 1 am on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday. The queue extended up to 2 km from the temple on the Grand Road as the devotees were required to enter the temple through Singha Dwara and exit through the other three gates of the shrine.

“An analysis of the AI cameras indicated that an estimated 5 lakh devotees offered prayers on New Year’s Day by evening. Police personnel executed the standard operating procedure properly and ensured a hassle-free darshan for devotees. By the blessings of the deities, no untoward incident was reported,” Puri SP Vinit Agrawal told TOI.

Over 60 platoons of police forces were in the Pilgrim Town for crowd control and traffic regulations with special focus on smooth movement of devotees inside the shrine. Cops in plain clothes were also deployed to curb snatching and thefts.

According to reports, devotees, who had been standing in queues since the previous night to seek Lord Jagannath’s blessings, grew restless and pushed through the barricades. This led to several devotees falling down and suffering minor injuries. They were quickly assisted by fellow worshippers and security personnel.

On Tuesday, 10 devotees experienced uneasiness and fell ill amid a similar situation near the temple entrance.