Maa Kandhuni temple is just five kilometres from Chhatrapur town, on the bank of Rushikulya river at Podapadar village. Kandhuni Devi’s temple is very popular in Ganjam district of the state
BERHAMPUR: As Durga Puja is round the corner, various Devi temples and ‘pithas’ are getting ready to celebrate the auspicious occasion.
One such place is Maa Kandhuni temple which is just five kilometres from Chhatrapur town on the bank of Rushikulya river at Podapadar village. Kandhuni Devi’s temple is very popular in Ganjam district of Odisha.
Devotees from across Ganjam and nearby districts come here for paying their obeisance. It is a small but very popular for picnic and get-together parties. Festivals which are celebrated here with pomp and gaiety are all Sankrantis, Durga Puja, and Diwali.
For the upcoming Maa Kandhuni Yatra, artist Satyanarayan Maharana has created an idol of Goddess Maa Kandhuni from old newspapers and with flour glue.
Interacting with Orissa POST, Maharana said, “I was ecstatic when I got the opportunity to create this amazing artefact. In fact, this is my first attempt to make any idol with old newspapers. It took me three days to create an idol of 7 feet 6 inches with a width of 4 feet 8 inches which is going to be exhibited at Sorda’s ‘Kantapidha jatra’. I am pretty hopeful that it will strike a chord with devotees.”
Maharana has already received many felicitations for his miniature chariots of the trinity. The effort of Maharana is to make people realise how to create various artefacts with old newspapers and to keep the environment healthy by not using plaster of Paris idols which often pollutes the water bodies during immersion.
