Puri: As the holy month of Kartika began on Tuesday, a large number of Habisyalis from across Odisha thronged the pilgrim town of Puri to observe the special Rai Damodar Brata.
The district administration of Puri has made elaborate arrangements to accommodate Habisyalis who have arrived in the pilgrim town to observe the Kartika Brata.
As the Kartika Brata will continue till November 5, police personnel in strength have been deployed to ensure the safety and security of the Habisyalis and other devotees during the sacred month.
The state government has made arrangements for the Habisyalis at various centres in Puri including Brundabati Niwas, Bagala Dharmasala, Puri Municipality Kalyan Mandap, and the Railway Tourist Complex. These places are offering comfortable accommodation and other essential services to Habisyalis.
Officials said as many as 1,950 Habisyalis have so far registered and are residing in these centres.
That apart, the state government has also made arrangements for the safety and security of the devotees. Altogether 22 platoons of police force, four Additional Superintendents of Police (ASP), 15 Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSPs), 15 inspectors, 65 Sub-Inspectors (SIs), and 100 constables have been deployed.
“Our police personnel are assisting Habisyalis for a smooth darshan at Shree Jagannath Temple.” said a senior police official.
To ensure smooth coordination and better public service during the holy Kartika Month, police have also set up a dedicated Feedback Centre at Uttara Dwara and placed Feedback QR Scans at various locations.
Puri Collector Dibya Jyoti Parida has inspected the centres and ensured that all necessary arrangements are in place.
The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has also made special arrangements for the devotees, including separate barricades and special facilities for bathing in the temple’s sacred ponds.
Arrangements have been made for accommodation for 2500 devotees in 5 holy water tanks of Puri. The district administration has made arrangements for Jagannath Darshan, Mahaprasad Sevan etc. for all the devotees.
Along with this, arrangements have been made for health check-up, drinking water and support of volunteers in the holy water tank. Arrangements have also been made for serving pala, das kudiya etc. in the evening for the devotees.
The fire service department has also taken all the security measures there, ensuring that devotees take bath in the holy water tank.
A special line has been made for devotees inside Shree Jagannath Temple to have darshan of the sibling deities. To ensure that other devotees can also have darshan safely, arrangements have been made for police and JTP to be deployed inside the Natamandap, while a large number of police have been deployed inside and outside the temple to control the crowd.
Sources said the entire area is being monitored through CCTV, and a control room has also been set up for this.
