Puri: On the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya today, the logs for the chariots of Lord Jagannath and His divine siblings – Balabhadra and Subhadra – were consecrated inside the Srimandir marking the beginning of construction work for holy chariots for Rath Yatra.
In view of the COVID-19 lockdown, the Akshaya Tritiya rituals of the Trinity were performed at the Chahani Mandap in the shrine this year.
As per the tradition, the whole process of making chariots of Lord Jagannath and His divine siblings takes 60 days from Akshaya Tritiya.
The ‘Chandan Yatra’ rituals of the deities will also be conducted inside the Srimandir. A decision in this regard has been taken by the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA).
Lord Jagannath will not visit Narendra pushkarini tank during the ceremony. A temporary tank has been constructed inside the periphery of the shrine for Chandan Yatra ceremony.
All the rituals of the Chandan Yatra ceremony will be held inside the premises of the temple for a period of 21 days.
Earlier, Puri King Gajapati Maharaj Dibyasingha Deb had said that the final decision on Rath Yatra will be taken after the post lockdown.