Puri Rath Yatra: Devotees Fail To Get Mahaprasad At Gundicha Temple Due To Delay In Rituals

Puri: Amid inordinate delay in the conduct of rituals of Lord Jagannath and siblings at the Adapa Mandap in Gundicha temple in Puri, devotees not only faced considerable inconvenience but failed to get the most sought after Mahaprasad.

According to sources, a huge quantity of Mahaprasad could not be made available to the devotees because of delay in the completion of the rituals of the Lords at Adapa Mandal on Friday. As a result, Mahaprasad worth lakhs of rupees was reportedly wasted.

Mahaprasad prepared for over 30,000 devotees with an estimated value of Rs eight lakh was wasted because of delay in rituals, claimed Narayan Mahasuara of Suara Mahasuara Nijog.

Because of delay in rituals like ‘Mangala Alati and ‘Gopala Ballabha’, Mahaprasad is not likely to be available for the devotees on time on Saturday also.

A large number of devotees are also waiting in long queues to have darshan of the deities in the Gundicha temple.

Sources said the ‘Sakala Dhupa’ ritual of the sibling deities got delayed and was completed at around 12.45 pm. Subsequently, the first ‘Bhoga Mandapa’ was completed at around 3pm. As a result, Mahaprasad could only be made available at 4 pm on Friday.

Similarly, ‘Madhyana Dhupa’ also got delayed and the ritual was completed at 8.40 pm. Subsequently, the second ‘Bhoga Mandapa’ was completed after 10 pm. As a result, a huge quantity of Mahaprasad could not be sold.

It was claimed that Mahaprasad could not reach the devotees in time due to delay in the conduct of ‘Ratrapahuda’ and ‘Dwaraphita Niti’.

Some servitors are causing delay in the conduct of rituals and as a result, Suara servitors and devotees are getting punishment, Narayan Mahasuara claimed.

Puri Collector Siddharth Shankar Swain said that a huge rush of devotees is being witnessed at Gundicha temple and the administration is trying to strike a balance between the crowd and the rituals. Concrete steps are being taken to ensure completion of the rituals as per schedule, he added.