Bolangir: An atmosphere filled with emotion and agony gripped the entire Gadashankar Dunguripali village in Bolangir district recently when the idol of Lord Jagannath was shifted from the 400-year-old temple to a makeshift camp as the administration began an eviction drive for Lower Suktel mega-irrigation-project, as per a report. Earlier, everything was fine for the residents of Gadashankar Dunguripali village which was full of activities. There were lines of houses, a school, and farmlands. And the village had a Jagannath temple as well.
In case of any problems, the villagers would rush to the temple to share their sorrows with the deity. Chief priest Rama Prasad Chand used to perform rituals for Lord Jagannath and the village deities Barghaten and Kandhenbudhi in the presence of the villagers. However, the villagers were forced to shift elsewhere after the first floodwater of the year was conserved in the dam whose construction has reached the last leg. BarghatenKandhenbudhi shrine has been inundated due to the ingress of the dam’s backwaters. The villagers hugged each other and were in tears while relocating their presiding deity Lord Jagannath and the two village deities. The administration intensified the eviction drive at Gadashankar Dunguripali and Banchhorpali after the dam work neared completion. The villagers have been displaced as the area would be submerged once the dam construction gets completed. The grief-stricken villagers took the idol of Lord Jagannath in a procession to the temporary camp. With tears rolling down from her eyes, a displaced villager Sunita Pradhan said that their village was like heaven and they were living happily there.
Sub-collector Kumar Nagbhushan assisted by sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Tophan Bag monitored the eviction under the direct supervision of Collector Chanchal Rana. The villagers have requested the administration to construct a temple for Lord Jagannath and make arrangements for all the rituals.