Puri: Idol of Lord Balabhadra falls on servitors during Rath Yatra ritual, 9 hurt

At least nine servitors of the Puri Jagannath temple were injured on Tuesday (July 9) when the idol of Lord Balabhadra fell on them while it was being taken out from the chariot to a temple as part of the Rath Yatra festival.

Of the nine, five were admitted to a hospital while four others suffered minor injuries, Puri Collector Siddharth Shankar Swain told the media.

How accident happened

The accident happened shortly after 9 pm when the heavy wooden idol was being brought down from Lord Balabhadra’s chariot, to be taken to the Gundicha temple.

This is known as “Pahandi” ritual. It appears that those who were carrying the idol lost control of it.

An injured servitor said the accident happened due to some problem with the rope-like material tied to the idol.

Two of those who were hospitalised were later released and they joined the rituals again.

Law minister rushes to Puri

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed concern about the incident and wished for speedy recovery of the injured servitors.

He directed Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan to visit Puri immediately and take appropriate steps.

The Puri Jagannath temple is under the state government’s law department.

Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida also went to Puri and, along with Harichandan, visited the hospital and spoke to the injured servitors.

Rituals completed

“With the blessings of Lord Jagannath, all injured persons are doing fine and the rituals are also going on,” Harichandan told reporters.

“We will report to the chief minister for further action,” Parida said.

The ritual of the sibling deities — Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra — resumed soon after the accident, and all the idols were taken inside the Gundicha temple, considered their birthplace.

They will remain in the Gundicha Temple till ‘Bahuda Jatra' or the return car festival on July 15 when the deities will go back to the Jagannath temple.

(With agency inputs)