As the preparations for Rath Yatra in Jagannath Temple, Puri goes underway, one of the servitors test positive for Covid-19 on Tuesday. The results came out after the mandatory testing of priests and police personnel were carried out ahead of the religious festival.
As per the directives by the Supreme Court, 1143 samples of servitors were tested for Covid-19 on Monday night. Out of the 1143 samples, only one came out positive for Covid-19.
According to reports, the servitor will not be involved in any ritual for the Rath Yatra. The servitor has been shifted to a Covid 19 Hospital and contact tracing has also been initiated.
The Supreme court gave a green signal on Monday to conduct the Rath Yatra in a restricted manner after modifying its earlier order. In the earlier order on June 18, the apex court prohibited the event in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak.
“If it is confined to Puri alone in a limited way without public attendance as proposed by Gajapati Maharaj of Puri, Chairman of the Puri Jagannath Temple administration, state govt will endeavour to make necessary arrangements to conduct it accordingly,” the SC bench said on Monday.
As per the directives by Supreme court not more than 500 people are allowed to pull the chariots.
The Rath Yatra is a prominent chariot festival held at Puri, Odisha every year. The idols of the three deities Lord Jagannath, his elder brother Lord Balabhadra and their sister Subhadra are taken out of the temple and given a tour on the chariots allowing the devotees to get their glimpses. The idols are taken to Gundicha temple and kept for few days. On the last day of the festival, the idols are again toured back to the temple on chariots.
The decision to hold the Rath Yatra comes after another prominent religious event of the country, the Ambubachi Mela is happening only with priests. The management committee of the Kamakhya Temple decided that the temple doors will be closed for devotes this time. This decision was taken with the aim to prevent further spreading of the Covid-19 pandemic.
(Feature image source: The Financial Express)
