Puri: Following orders of the Odisha government Puri district administration auctioned over 10,000 quintals of “Arpan Rice” which was collected by the previous government before Srimandira Parikrama project.
The auction of ‘Arpan Rice’ fetched Rs 2.86 crore which was deposited in Puri Jagannath Temple fund.
Puri Collector and Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Deputy Chief Administrator Siddharth Shankar Swain informed that a rice mill owner from Nimapada bought the entire stock.
Total 14,017.23 quintals Arpan Rice collected from devotees across Odisha was ferried to Puri before Parikrama project.
Of this quantity 4610.44 quintals was stored in Srigundicha Temple, 2618.07 quintals with Akshayapatra Foundation and 6788.72 quintals rice was kept at a civil supplies godown.
3,856.84 quintals of Arpan Rice from Srigundicha temple was used to prepare Mahaprasad for free distribution among devotees visiting Puri Jagannath Temple, sources said.
The rice stored in the godowns in Puri became unfit to be used for the Mahaprasad of Lord Jagannath and his siblings. Therefore Chief Minister Mohan Majhi-led state government decided to auction it.