Dark ages again as Orissa shuts for partial eclipse

While the rest of the world flocked to Siberia and China to observe the solar eclipse, marvelling at the celestial phenomenon...

While the rest of the world flocked to Siberia and China to observe the solar eclipse, marvelling at the celestial phenomenon, a superstitious Orissa shut down for the entire day dreading the ill-effects of the partial Sun.

The state did not even lie in the path of the total solar eclipse and was one of the several Indian states where the partial solar eclipse started late in the afternoon. But the largely superstitious populace of the state did not want to take any chances. Even the supposedly urbane Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik issued an order last night for closure of all government offices, schools and colleges in the state. The High Court and lower courts also remained closed.

Sources said the request for a holiday came from the influential non-gazetted officials8217; association and the Chief Minister promptly said yes. The CM even postponed the inauguration of his scheme to distribute rice at Rs 2 a kg, a pre-poll promise, to August 2.

The IAS officials in the state were surprised by the holiday announcement. 8220;I am not complaining about getting one more holiday. But how can the Government shut down for a solar eclipse? Is it progressive thinking?8221; asked an IAS officer. A BJD leader said the Government did not want to annoy the non-gazetted government employees just before the Assembly polls.

Normal life was also paralysed as hotels and business establishments shut shop. Bachelors and tourists who depend on roadside eateries for food were the most harassed as hotels stopped cooking food fearing the ill-effects of the eclipse. 8220;The scriptures have advised that one should not take food during the eclipse. So we are not cooking,8221; said the owner of a roadside restaurant in Bhubaneswar.

Several temples were also shut during the period. All rituals in Puri8217;s Jagannath temple were stopped during the day. Temples reopened in the evening after purification ceremonies. Some astrologers in Puri had warned Patnaik against watching the solar eclipse, predicting that the CM would face a wobbly patch if he did so.