Union Ministry of Home Affairs granted permission for construction of chariots for the Puri Rath Yatra.
Bhubaneswar: In a major development today, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs granted permission for construction of chariots for the Puri Rath Yatra. However, the decision on conduct of Rath Yatra will be taken by the Odisha Government, the MHA stated today.
In a letter to addressed to Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy, MHA Under Secretary Ashish Kumar Singh stated:
“The activity of Ratha construction is allowed to be undertaken in the Ratha Khala, which is situated on both sides of the Grand Road in front of the Temple Office and Sri Nahar (Palace), subject to specific conditions.”
The conditions specified by the MHA are:
- No religious congregation takes place in the Ratha Khala. Complete segregation of Ratha-khala should be ensured.
- The new guidelines on lockdown measures issued by the MHA on May 1, 2020 including the National Directirves for COVID-19 Management should be compulsorily adhered to.
“The decisions regarding holding of Ratha Yatra be takne by the State Government keeping in view the conditions prevailing at that point of time,” the letter read.
The State Government had sought Centre’s approval to start construction of chariots for Rath Yatra which is scheduled in Puri on June 23.
Earlier, on May 4, the Managing Committee of Sri Jagannath Temple had written to the State Government seeking its approval to start construction of chariots with full adherance to the norms specified in Lockdown 3.0 and COVID-19 management guidelines of both the State and Central Governments.
