In the wake of the Niladri Bije fiasco on Sunday night, as the IAS officers’ body took strong objection to the manhandling of Arvind Agarwal, Puri Collector during the ritual, the Odisha government constituted a one-man judicial commission to suggest reforms in the temple’s management .
The Commission will be headed by the retired judge of Odisha High Court, B.P Das, assisted by former temple administrator, Mahimohan Tripathy.
The unruly behaviour of the servitors during Niladri Bije of the Holy Trinity in Puri on Sunday night caused widespread outrage among the devotees in Odisha and across the country.
With recurrence of the disturbances, including heckling and reported shoving of media persons compounded with Puri collector’s observations and police complaints, the public suspicion increased on the gross failure of Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) to effectively manage the functioning of the shrine.
Invoking Sri Jagannath Temple (Administration) Act, 1952 the government said that the judicial panel’s terms of reference (ToR) will include a review of the security structure at the Jagannath temple in view of the threats posed from terror outfits.
The Commission’s ToR would look into the law and order situation in and outside the temple premises, apart from measures for proper conservation of this 12th century shrine.
The six point ToR also includes streamlining the seva systems and organising the servitors, training for servitors and people entrusted with smooth conduct of rituals, welfare, health, housing and education for their familes.
The judicial panel will ensure proper renumeration for the sevayats, priests and other endowment officials.
Adequate measures to facilitate darshan for the devotees in an orderly manner, system to make ‘mahaprasad’ available, communication facilities and affordable accommodation for the pilgrims, including vehicular parking will be included in the panel’s terms of reference (ToR).
Last year, during the Nabakalebara festival, the conduct of the priests and the temple administration’s inept handling of the rituals, including ‘Brahma Parivartan’ (soul transfer of the deities) fiasco had invited massive public protests against the state government.
