Rajnagar: Among all Rath Yatras celebrated in the state, Rajnagar has a special place among devotees owing to its unique tradition of celebrating Rath Yatra with a chariot made of muruja (alpana).
Jagannath devotees of this town in Kendrapara district are celebrating their Rangoli Rath Yatra Thursday with pomp and gaiety. The entire town is feverish with enthusiasm and beams with pride as this chariot is the only one to be made of up alpana.
Kanika’s erstwhile king Shibendra Narayan Singh Deo was a devotee of Lord Baladevjew who established a temple for his Lord on the banks of a river near Bhitarkanika.
That said, the devotees were unable to pull the chariot owing to poor condition of the road. That led the servitors and devotees to come up with a unique way to draw an alpana of a chariot and celebrate the festival.
The deities are brought from Ratnasinghasana and placed atop the muruja chariot and the festival is celebrated in a symbolic manner. That has been the tradition here ever since.
PNN