Puri: Not a leaf moves without his will – whatever is happening is happening for the good. Today, we are celebrating the great festival of Ratha Yatra of Lord Jagannath. Millions of people will have the occasion to see the Lord on the biggest chariot. After two years, the festival of Ratha Yatra is being organized in the presence of the devotees. All arrangements have been completed and the wait is over when the three deities will give a glance to their disciples from the magnificent Chariots. Every year on the auspicious occasion of Ashadha Shukla Paksha Dwitiya tithi, the world’s largest chariot festival – the Ratha Yatra of Lord Jagannath is observed when the trinity gods of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra embark on the annual sojourn to the Gundicha Temple from the Srimandira.
Like on every other aspect of life, the Covid-19 Pandemic had its impact on the festivities of Lord Jagannath. Due to the restrictions, the Ratha Yatra in Puri had to be observed sans devotees in 2020 and 2021. The Lord’s disciples had to pray from their homes. But, as the will of the God prevails, the pandemic cannot dampen the spirit of the devotees. This year, the world famous Ratha Yatra is being celebrated with much more vigor and pomp.
This year, the number of devotees thronging to Puri during the Ratha Yatra festival is likely to be more than fifteen lakhs and the government of Odisha and the District administration are leaving no stone unturned to make it happen. While the Naba Joubana Darshana of the Lords was completed on Tuesday, the making of the chariots is in the final stages. Odisha Police, Health Department, Municipal authorities, special forces, traffic personnel and all other officials associated with the smooth conduct of the festivities are on standby and ready to serve the people during the Yatra. Mock drills involving the fire and police personnel have also been conducted to thwart any untoward incident. A mock Green Corridor was also created on Wednesday to check the efficacy of the strategy.
With a view to minimize the risks of Covid-19 infections, the Government of Odisha has decided to distribute more than ten lakh face masks during the festival. Emergency health facilities have been set up to attend the needs. Odisha Police has already started deploying more than 180 platoons of forces in Puri ahead of the grand chariot festival. The forces include elite commandos, special quick reaction teams and jawans from the armed forces. Fire personnel, members of the ODRAF have also been deployed.
In the last two years, during the Pandemic, the Ratha Yatra had to be organized with controls on the presence of devotees. The age old rituals had no impact and were carried out by the servitors with devotion. The development works being carried out by the Government of Odisha in the peripheries of the Jagannath temple also continued without hindrance. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has been reviewing the works associated with the Ratha Yatra regularly and has instructed the officials for a smooth conduct of the Yatra. Also, he has made a number of visits to the Jagannath Temple and reviewed the works being done under the Parikrama Project. The devotees coming to Puri this year can clearly see the change in the city and take with them a wonderful memory and blessings of the Lord.