Days before Ayodhya temple opening, Naveen government’s own shrine, own ceremony

For over Rs 800 crore, the government has created a 75-metre passage around the outer walls (Meghanada Pacheri) of the 12th-century Jagannath Temple and beautified it. Security will be provided to the temple and basic civic amenities ensured for the lakhs of devotees who daily visit the temple.

The government announced the date for inaugurating the corridor after a review by the scion of Puri’s erstwhile royal family and Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee (SJTMC) chairperson, Dibyasingha Deb, on November 3. “Many of the works are nearing completion and it will be opened to the public on January 17. A special puja and havan will be organised before the opening of the project,” Deb told reporters afterwards.

The importance of the Parikrama project can be gauged from the fact that it was closely monitored by the CM’s confidant, V K Pandian.

Like the RSS that has planned to celebrate the Ram Mandir’s consecration across India by organising programmes at temples, the Patnaik government also has a detailed set of rituals and events in the run-up to the opening of the corridor. According to sources, it has plans to take this beyond Odisha and is planning, among other things, to organise a recital of the Vedas at the four gates of the Jagannath Temple, a big havan, and Sankirtan.

“Havan and puja will start from January 15. The list of guests and religious leaders to be invited to the ceremony will be finalised after consultation with the state government. There are plans to organise programmes in Jagannath temples in different places,” said Ranjan Das, the chief administrator of the Jagannath temple.

A complete makeover

Pandian has been closely involved with the project ever since it was conceived. Almost every Saturday early morning, the former IAS officer, who is now the chairman of the Vision 5T and Nabin Odisha initiative, assessed the work on the corridor and interacted with senior officials of the district administration and Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation, the state PSU entrusted with implementing the project. After taking stock of the corridor’s status on November 4, Pandian directed that it be completed before December 15.

Along with the Parikrama project, the Patnaik government is working on other initiatives to transform Puri. These include the Shree Setu, a bridge construction project to decongest the temple town, the revival of the Raghunandan Library, Jagannath Ballav Pilgrim Centre, parking projects, and a market complex. All of these works are being done for Rs 4,000 crore under the Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture (ABADHA) scheme.

“Once these projects are completed, Puri will get a complete makeover. Devotees who visited Puri six to seven years back will find a sea change with the completion of the Parikrama project. Both Patnaik and Pandian will be equally credited for the Parikrama project and other projects,” said a senior servitor of the temple who wished to remain anonymous.

BJD’s political play

Besides the Jagannath temple Parikrama project, the government is carrying out the beautification of every famous shrine such as the Sun temple at Konark, the Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar, the Samaleswari temple in Sambalpur. Special grants have been sanctioned for the redevelopment of temples from the district to the village level.

Government insiders say the primary objective of this temple beautification drive is to hold back the BJP by pushing a version of soft Hindutva and regional pride. While Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal (BJD) comfortably won the last Assembly election, it received a jolt in the parliamentary polls as the BJP increased its tally to eight MPs (there are 21 MPs elected in total from the state).

“With Odisha traditionally a land of culture and heritage, by developing temples, the government can also boast about ‘Odia asmita (Odia pride)’ associated with these temples. The move is also seen as an attempt by the BJD government to push for soft Hindutva,” said a senior bureaucrat.

Senior BJP leader Prithiviraj Harichandan said the BJD was scared of the consecration of the Ram Mandir and that is why it was steaming ahead with all these temple redevelopment projects. “The BJD claims to be a secular party. After 23 years, it came to their mind that they can play soft Hindutva if they sanction funds for temples,” he said. Last year, the BJP’s Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi had raised questions in the Lok Sabha about the heritage corridor project alleging illegality in its implementation, an accusation the ruling party dismissed.