Security Lapses Galore At Puri Jagannath Temple; Does Anyone Care?

Bhubaneswar: The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration on Friday served notices on three personnel of Jagannath Temple Police (JTP) for a security breach at the 12th Century shrine in Puri on April 20.

The laxity in the security arrangements at the temple came to the fore after a youth climbed atop and reached the ‘Neelchakra’. The youth from Bhadrak reportedly scaled the height of the temple and tied his ‘gamuchha’ (towel) to the Neelachakra after removing the Patitapaban Bana (holy flag).

Instances of such security lapses are not new. Despite rules against carrying cellphones inside the shrine, devotees have regularly posted selfies clicked on the premises on social media. A cop was even suspended last October after he posted on Facebook his selfies at Baishi Pahacha, Anand Bazaar and near Patita Pabana.

Selfies are not the only cause of worry. Here’s a list of loot incidents reported from the temple:

—April 10, 2019: Theft of cash worth about Rs 1 lakh from a locker inside Suara and Mahasuara Niyoga office near Koili Baikuntha.

—April 1, 2019: Cash looted from the hundi (donation box) inside Ram temple near the south gate of the temple late in the night.

—July 30, 2011: Two silver earrings stolen from Bata Ganesh temple

—November 12, 2001: Theft of two idols of Lord Madan Mohan and Lord Amabasya Narayan made of precious metals.

Security arrangements at the temple have come under the scanner time and again. In March 2014, two Indian Mujahideen operatives, whom Delhi police had arrested, reportedly admitted that Puri was there target and they had visited Bhubaneswar and Puri for a recce. There were intelligence inputs about a possible terror attack in Puri during Rath Jatra in 2012.

It’s time to tighten the noose before any serious relapse costs us dear.