Puri: The Shree Jagannath Temple will remain closed for darshan by devotees tentatively from 2:30 PM to 6:00 PM on Wednesday to facilitate the ‘Diba Pahuda Niti’ (afternoon siesta ritual after meals) of the deities.
While ‘Diba Pahuda Niti’ is a daily ritual during the ‘Pahili Bhoga’ month, the Chhattisa Nijog meeting held on December 10 decided to conduct this ritual on a single day of the month as a symbolic gesture. The decision was made considering the heavy influx of devotees and the ongoing Ratna Bhandar (or treasure trove ) repair work.
On the first day of the Ratna Bhandar repair and renovation project, a 20-foot-high iron scaffolding was installed inside the Bhitar Ratna Bhandar to facilitate restoration. Skilled artisans from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) are tasked with addressing the structural cracks using the scaffolding.
“The repair work will be suspended tomorrow due to the observance of the ‘Diba Pahuda Niti,’” said DB Garnayak, ASI Superintendent, Odisha Circle. “Work will resume the following day, beginning with the removal of lime plaster. Stones with cracks will then be replaced using high-quality stones procured from Nilagiri.”
The repair work is being carried out as per the Standard Operating Procedure issued by the state government.
The restoration process involves careful precision to ensure the preservation of the temple’s historic structure while maintaining its sanctity.
It is pertinent here to mention that the Ratna Bhandar or treasury of the 12th century shrine was opened in July this year after 46 years. In the run-up to the 2024 assembly elections, the ruling BJP has made the promise to open the Ratna Bhandar and carry out the inventory of the valuables kept there.
The inventory of valuables was last carried out in 1978 which is believed to be inconclusive and incomplete.
In 2018, the team of officials who went to carry out the inventory were shocked to find out that the original keys of the inner chamber of the Ratna Bhandar were missing. The BJD government subsequently came into the line of fire as the opposition parties held the government responsible for the missing keys.
