Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra's chariots reach Shree Gundicha Temple a day after Rath Yatra

Puri: The chariots of Lord Jagannath and Devi Subhadra, pulled by devotees reached their destination at Shree Gundicha Temple on Wednesday after being stranded for the night on the Grand Road which connects the temple to the 12th century Srimandir here.

Devi Subhadra's chariot 'Darpadalan' was stranded at Bandasakha about 200 m away from the destination, while Lord Jagannath's 'Nandighosh' at Galagandi, about two km from Gundicha temple during the Rath Yatra on Tuesday.

Sibling deity Lord Balabhadra's chariot 'Taladwaj', which leads the three, had reached Saradhabali, in front of Shree Gundicha temple.

The chariot pulling was stopped at 8 pm on Tuesday.

The idols are, however, yet to be taken inside Gundicha temple, where they will be present till June 28. They will then be taken back to the Srimandir (Shree Jagannath Mandir) in Bahuda Yatra.

Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) officials said that the sibling deities will remain on their chariots for the time being and will be taken to the Adapa Mandapa of the Gundicha Temple in the customary 'Pahandi' ritual on Thursday evening.

SJTA is looking into the reason for the delay by the chariots in reaching Gundicha Temple, they said.

They were taken out of the Shree Jagannath temple after completing the myriad rituals ahead of time and were slated to reach Gundicha Temple, which is about three km away, by 6 p m on Tuesday, they added.

Senior servitor Binayak Dasmohapatra said there were more people on the chariots and also in the inner cordons, which affected the pulling of the gigantic chariots and led to the delay.

SJTA chief administrator Ranjan Kumar Das when asked said, “All happens as per the wishes of Lord Jagannath". Meanwhile, the pilgrim seaside town witnessed on Wednesday the same enthusiasm which was seen on Rath Yatra when the chariots were pulled towards Gundicha temple. Thousands of people joined in and the police arrangements were the same as it was on the previous day.

With the chariots stranded, many devotees who could not make it on Tuesday rushed to Puri and to avail the opportunity to pull the chariots.

About 12 lakh devotees had flocked to the Grand Road outside Shree Jagannath Temple on Tuesday to witness the annual ride of the deities in their chariots to Gundicha Temple, which is their birthplace.

Elaborate arrangements were made by the district administration and Odisha Police for smooth conduct of the festival. It continued on Wednesday too.

Though 14 people were injured due to the heavy rush of people on Tuesday during the pulling of Lord Balabhadra's chariot, Puri superintendent of police K V Singh said “Five people sustained minor injury due to the heavy rush. No stampede broke out in Rath Yatra.”