Jajpur: The time table has been finalised for the chariot festival of Jajpur district’s presiding deity Goddess Biraja.
As per the decision taken at a meeting recently convened under chairmanship of Jajpur District Collector Chakravarti Singh Rathore, the chariot pulling will be held between 3.30pm and 6.30pm.
It was also decided that section 144 will be imposed on the temple premises to avoid congregation of devotees during the nine-day long festival from October 17 to 25. All the shops near the shrine will remain closed during the festival period. This year, devotees will miss ‘Pada Darshan’ of the goddess in the temple.
In order to avoid the spread of coronavirus, COVID-19 test of servitors who will be engaged in the chariot festival has been made mandatory. Apart from that, the cops who will be deployed will also undergo a similar test. The servitors and the cops will be issued with special identity cards so that servitors or policemen who have not undergone tests can easily be identified.
PNN