Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday dedicated the much-awaited Srimandir Parikrama Prakalpa around Jagannath Temple in Odisha’s Puri to the public in the presence of Gajapati Maharaj Dibyasingha Deb.
The CM said, “The project has been possible due to the blessings of Lord Jagannath.” Representatives of around 90 temples and thousands of devotees were also present.
Following the inauguration, the Gajapati performed ‘Purna Ahuti’ rituals to conclude the 3-day Maha Yajna, which saw mantras and Vedic hymns fill the air of the pilgrim town ahead of the event.
Earlier in the day, the CM headed for the grand ceremony after arriving at the temporary helipad at Matitita around 1.15 pm. He is scheduled release a number of documentary videos on the project and felicitate all involved in the execution of the parikrama plan around 2.30 pm, before leaving for Bhubaneswar.
Devotees in large numbers also flocked to the pilgrim town, adorned with flowers and decorative lights, to witness the grand event. People will be allowed to enter the parikrama after 3 pm.
MAGNITUDE OF TRANSFORMATION
The Rs 800 crore heritage corridor project, which aimed at enhancing the visual connection between devotees and Jagannath temple, has drastically transformed the area surrounding the 12th-century shrine, which earlier had its periphery encroached upon. Aerial photos of the temple before and after the implementation of the project show the magnitude of the transformation.
The project includes parking areas, Shree Setu (a bridge), Shree Danda/Marg, running parallel to Bada Danda to ease pilgrim movement, pilgrimage centre, restroom facilities, clock rooms, and various other amenities for visitors in and around the Jagannath Temple, now centred around an expansive 75-metre parikrama, which provides a clear view of the majestic 214.8 ft-high shrine and, its Neelachakra (blue wheel).
The parikrama has a seven-metre wide green buffer zone that protects the outer walls of the temple, Meghanada Pacher, and a 10-metre ‘pradakshina’ path, which is a pedestrian-only path to be used by devotees for circumambulation of the temple. The outer pradakshina comprises of landscape zones, pilgrim amenities, and emergency service lanes.
The 14-metre-wide garden had plants integral to Jagannath culture – saptaparni, patali, baula, kadamba, gangasiuli, katha champa, swarna champa and shrubs like katha rangani, swarna ghanti, galphimia yellow carpet, karabira, sugandharaj and kunda malli. The 8-metre outer pradakshina is also covered by trees on either side, which will act as a shaded pathway for visitors/pilgrims.
The 10-metre public convenience zone is located at a distance of 40 metre from the temple’s boundary and has nine restrooms, cloakrooms, drinking water fountains, information-cum-donation kiosks and shelter pavilions for shade and rest. There is a4.5-meter service lane for service vehicles and maintenance of the corridor and another 4.5-meter-wide dedicated to shuttle cum emergency lane for any kind of emergency and disaster management.
A 630-metre long road (Shree Danda/Marg) has been constructed at a cost of Rs 90 crore to provide a direct connect from the multi-level car parking inside Jagannath Ballav pilgrim centre to Dolabedi (Shree Mandir Parikrama site).
A 2.3 km-long 4-lane Shree Setu (trumpet bridge) has been built at a cost of Rs 200 crore to provide a direct access to tourists to the multi-level car parking inside Jagannath Ballav pilgrim centre in the town from the Puri NH bypass while avoiding long traffic snarls. A gate ahas been built to welcome the devotees entering Puri through Shree Setu. There is also a View Tower from where tourists can get a glimpse of the entire city.
