Puri: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will spend around 50 minutes at the Jagannath temple here during his visit to the 12th-century shrine scheduled for February 7.
According to officials of the district administration who attended a preparatory meeting Saturday, Modi will arrive at the helipad in the holy town by an Indian Air Force chopper at 10.40 am and travel to Srimandir by road at 10.55 am. “The prime minister will complete darshan of the deities by 11.45 am,” said additional collector Uddhav Charan Majhi.
Sources said the preparatory meeting, held under the chairmanship of district collector Aravind Agarwal, discussed a range of issues including renovation of the helipad for the PM’s arrival and security arrangements in the town and the temple during his visit.
“The district administration has decided to repair roads connecting the helipad with Srimandir and make Grand Road free from stray cattle for the prime minister’s visit,” Majhi said.
Sources said the district administration has decided to open a special control room to monitor security arrangements during Modi’s visit. “Gajapati Maharaja Divyasingha Deb, Chhatisha Niyog Nayak and the chief administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) may welcome the prime minister at the Lions’ Gate of the temple,” said a senior official of the district administration.
SJTA sources said Modi will enter the temple through the Lions’ Gate and reach the sanctum sanctorum via Baishi Pahacha (22 steps) and the Jay-Bijay door. He is also scheduled to visit the Bimala temple and the Mahalaxmi temple on Srimandir premises. “We will prepare a detailed blueprint for the prime minister’s visit to the temple premises at a separate meeting of the Chhatisha Niyog and the Srimandir managing committee February 1,” SJTA administrator (rituals) Pradeep Kumar Das said.
The prime minister’s family priest, Raghunath Gochhikar, meanwhile, said he would offer a Khandua Pata to the visiting leader.
