Puri (Odisha): The inventory of the outer treasury of the Ratna Bhandar of the Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri has been completed, the temple administration said on April 11.
Jagannath Temple Chief Administrator Arabinda Kumar Padhee said the first phase of the inventory exercise, which began on March 25, has been successfully concluded with the completion of the outer treasury work.
“The inventory process of the outer treasury of the Sri Jagannath Temple in Puri has been completed. The process began on March 25th and the second phase has concluded, and the entire Ratna Bhandar inventory is now complete,” Padhee told ANI.
He further stated that the next phase involving the inner Ratna Bhandar is scheduled to begin on April 13, in accordance with the government’s Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). However, the exercise will be temporarily paused after commencement due to the upcoming Chandan Yatra rituals, to ensure smooth darshan for devotees and to avoid disruption of temple activities.
“As per the government’s standard operating procedure, the inventory of the inner Ratna Bhandar will start from April 13th. However, due to upcoming rituals for Chandan Yatra, the inventory process will be temporarily halted during this period and will resume once the ritualistic pressure reduces, ensuring there is no adverse impact on the darshan of the deities,” he said.
Chairman of the Inspection Committee for the Ratna Bhandar of Shri Jagannath Temple, Justice Biswanath Rath (Retd), also confirmed that the outer treasury work is nearing completion and expressed confidence that the remaining process would be completed smoothly.
“The work of the outer treasury is underway. Our endeavour was to complete this work this week, which is now almost done. We will try to finish the inner treasury work now. Every item in the treasury is safe,” he said.
Earlier, Odisha Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan had announced that the second phase of the inventory (counting) of Bhagwan Jagannath’s ornaments from the Ratna Bhandar was scheduled to be conducted on April 8, 9 and 10.
Speaking to ANI, Harichandan had said that the enumeration process covered the ornaments in the Bahar Ratna Bhandar and was expected to be completed within the stipulated three days.
“The enumeration of Ratna Bhandar will start again, commencing on the 8th of this month. For the 8th, 9th, and 10th, the dates were scheduled, and I am expecting that by the end of the third day, we will be able to complete the enumeration of all the ornaments in Bahar Ratna Bhandar,” he had said.
He had further stated that the ornaments would be matched against the inventory list compiled in 1978, with 3D photography and digital documentation also being undertaken as part of the process.
“We will then be able to produce a proper listing of the ornaments, matching it with the list compiled in 1978. We are taking all kinds of digital photographs, including 3D photography. The nomenclature is being identified and will be properly stored for subsequent years,” Harichandan said.
The minister added that the entire exercise is expected to be completed before the Rath Yatra. (With inputs from ANI)
