Puri: The Paschima Dwara (West Gate) of Shri Jagannath Temple in Odisha’s Puri town opened for local devotees on Monday amid the growing demand to throw open all the four gates of the shrine for the convenience of pilgrims.
The devotees have to show their Aadhaar card or identity proof of their nativity at the gate before entering Srimandir.
Earlier, devotees were allowed to enter the shrine only through the main gate or Singhadwar while the other three gates remained shut since the COVID pandemic broke out in 2020, and this led to serpentine queues, causing them inconvenience.
On Sunday, noted sand sculptor and a member of the Shree Jagannath Temple Management Committee, Sudarsan Pattnaik, warned to launch a sit-in dharna outside the shrine until one more gate is opened for the locals. Puri MLA Jayant Sarangi had ALSO criticised the administration and even threatened to launch agitation over the issue.
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and former minister Maheswar Mohanty had also demanded that people should be allowed to enter the 12th-century shrine through all the gates.
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