Puri: The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has decided to develop infrastructure at all shrines, mutts and ponds having service links with Srimandir.
A decision to this effect was taken at a recent meeting of Shree Jagannath Managing Committee. “The temple administration will create a corpus fund for the purpose. We will allocate `2 crore towards this in the current fiscal,” said SJTA chief administrator Pradeep Jena.
The Srimandir managing committee has planned to take up a host of welfare measures for poor servitors. Sources said the temple administration has been mulling construction of houses on Srimandir land and distribute them to landless servitors. Besides, poor servitors having landed properties will be included in the housing schemes of Central and State governments.
According to sources, SJTA will open an exclusive school for the children of servitors. “We are planning to open a school in the current academic year. The shrine administration may rent a building for this purpose,” said a SJTA official.
The Srimandir managing committee has asked the SJTA to look after a newly-inaugurated musical fountain at Narendra pond. Sources said the tourism department will soon commission a laser show at the pond. The temple managing committee, meanwhile, condemned the indiscipline during the Hati Besha ritual of presiding deities June 9. According to sources, the panel has asked servitors to cooperate with the SJTA for smooth performance of rituals during the upcoming Rath Yatra.
“The temple administration usually provides `25,000 to Daita servitors after completion of Hati Besha ritual. This year, we will not provide the amount to Daitas in the wake of indiscipline during the ritual,” said the official.
According to sources, the temple managing committee will implement the Orissa High Court order while regulating servitors’ entry to chariots. “It has been decided to disallow relatives and family members of servitors from climbing the chariots,” said a source in SJTA.
Temple administration sources said servitors’ relatives will be allowed to watch the Nabajouban Darshan ritual inside the shrine June 24.
The SJTA has decided to display hoardings across the city to inform devotees about the Adharpana ritual. “Devotees will be discouraged from collecting ‘Pana’ (delicious drinks) offered to the deities on their respective chariots. People are not supposed to partake the drinks,” said the SJTA official.
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