Puri: Incessant rains have exposed the shady work done by the authorities as water was found leaking from the roof of Jagamohan Tuesday. The matter came to notice when one of the servitors water flowing under his feet before the commencement of Mangala Alati inside the ‘Garbha Gruha’.
Hardly after three months the Jagamohan, the hall facing the sanctum sanctorum of Puri Jagannath Temple was opened for darshan to public on completion of its repair work.
General Secretary of Jagannath Sevayat Sammilani, Kashinath Khuntia said “During Mangala Alati inside the ‘Garbha Gruha’, I witnessed water flowing under my feet. When I checked to find out the exact cause of this, I saw water leaking from the roof on the Ballav Pindi drenching the Chandua.”
Due to the leakage, the Ballav Bhog of the Trinity almost got delayed, however, after the rain stopped, the servitors were able to perform the rituals, sources said.
“We have informed the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) regarding the matter and also urged them to take up the issue with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) which had earlier confirmed the completion of the repair work of the Jagamohan.”
Even as the incident has triggered concerns regarding hassle free conduct of rituals and also the safety of the temple, servitors complained that officials of the temple administration or the ASI are yet to take stock of the situation.
It may be mentioned here that the ASI had March 6 filed an affidavit in Orissa High Court stating that the repair work of the Jagamohan had been completed. The hall was thrown open for general darshan by devotees April 16 after remaining out of bounds for almost two years.
As per reports, the ASI had taken up the repair work of the Jagamohan January 27, 2016.
