With the number of devotees seeking darshan at the Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri going over 50,000 every day after the COVID-19 pandemic, the Odisha government has decided to come up with special force for security and crowd management at the 12th century shrine.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has approved the creation of a dedicated special security battalion which will have 1,190 personnel.
“The special battalion for the world famous Shri Jagannath Temple has been envisioned and conceptualised to render full proof security, better facilitation of the devotees, and crowd management measures,” the State government said in a statement on Monday.
According to the government, the temple, which holds great significance to religious Hindus, draws thousands of devotees every day. In the post COVID-19 period, the daily footfall of devotees is estimated to be about 50,000 per day, and during weekends and on important religious occasions the numbers swell up to three times their daily count.
“The anticipated flow of devotees is likely to witness substantial increase after the dedication of the new Heritage Corridor Project - Sri Mandir Parikrama Prakalp (SMPP) to the public,” the government sources said.
Under the SMPP, a 75-metre area abutting Meghanada Pacheri – the grand boundary around Jagannath temple is being redeveloped at an estimated cost of ₹943 crore.
The project includes a seven-metre green buffer zone and 10-metre pedestrian-only antar (inner) pradakshina that will be used for parikrama (clockwise circumambulation) of the temple. The eight-metre outer circumambulation path would be covered by trees on either side. There will be a 10-metre public convenience zone. This project is going to be dedicated for public on January 17 next year.
Moreover, a massive ₹4,224.22 crore is being spent for the Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture scheme which is expected to transform the infrastructure of Puri. Various projects are at different stages of progress. The tourist inflow is likely to swell further in the near future.
“Based on the feedback given by V.K. Pandian, Chairman 5T and Navin Odisha, following his discussion with all the stakeholders, Mr. Patnaik has approved the creation of a dedicated Special Security Battalion for providing full proof security to Jagannath Temple, Puri, crowd management and devotee facilitation,” the statement said.
