Marked by elephant scare, Ahmedabad's Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra passes off peacefully

Ahmedabad, Jun 27 (PTI) The 148th Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath passed off peacefully in Ahmedabad on Friday in the presence of thousands of devotees, who thronged to catch a glimpse of the deity, although this year's annual event witnessed a brief disruption after an elephant ran amok.

It took around 12 hours for the yatra to conclude as it traversed through different parts of the city.

One person was injured after the male elephant, agitated by excessive noise, broke a barricade and rushed into a narrow lane in the morning when the procession was passing from Khadia area of the city.

The mahouts on two other elephants followed the jumbo and controlled it, ensuring that the procession proceeded smoothly on its designated route, said RK Sahu, superintendent of Kankaria Zoo in the city.

"One bystander was injured after an elephant got disturbed and entered a narrow lane in the Khadia area. The injured person has been shifted to a nearby hospital," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Control Room) Komal Vyas.

The chariots of Lord Jagannath, sister Subhadra and their elder brother Balbhadra commenced their journey in the morning on the 16 kilometre route here after Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel performed 'Pahind Vidhi'- a symbolic ritual of cleaning way for the Raths using a golden broom at 400-year-old Jagannath temple in Jamalpur area.

The three raths or chariots were pulled out of the Jagannath temple in Jamalpur by the Khalasi community as per the age-old tradition.

The Rath Yatra is taken out every year on Ashadhi Bij, the second day of Ashadh month, as per the Hindu calendar.

Before the deities were placed on the chariots, Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited the temple around 4 am and took part in the 'Mangla Aarti' ritual.

The procession that stretches up to 1.5 km, comprised nearly 17 decorated elephants, 100 trucks with tableaux, around 30 religious congregations and 'akharas' along with around 20 singing troupes followed by three chariots.

The yatra moved through some communally-sensitive areas like Jamalpur, Kalupur, Shahpur and Dariyapur throughout the day before it returned to the temple late evening after almost 12 hours.

Displaying the spirit of brotherhood and communal harmony, the minority community welcomed the chariots on various points of the city in Muslim dominated areas with garlands and other offerings.

As part of an old tradition, chief priest of the Jagannath temple Dilipdasji Maharaj, who moves with the procession in an open Jeep, was offered a shawl and a garland at Dariyapur by local Muslim leaders.

The priest also set free white pigeons as a display of Hindu-Muslim brotherhood.

A similar display of brotherhood and communal harmony happened when the Mahant, whose vehicle was the last in the procession, reached Shahpur area during the return of the Rath Yatra.

At Rangila Chowky in Shahpur, local Muslims, led by former MLA Gyasudding Shaikh, garlanded Dilipdasji and set free pigeons as a display of communal harmony.

Before the procession reached Dariyapur, several Muslim men and women walked on the route with large posters having slogans urging citizens to maintain communal harmony and respect each other's religious beliefs for a better tomorrow.

This time, several tableaux featuring the Indian Army's Operation Sindoor against Pakistan became the highlight of the procession.

Trucks were decorated with the cutouts of BrahMos missiles as well as posters of Colonel Sophia Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh who had briefed the media about Operation Sindoor last month.

Nearly 23,800 security personnel of the local police force, reserve police and central armed police forces (CAPF) were deployed in the city to guard the Rath Yatra, which usually attracts 14-15 lakh people.

An Artificial Intelligence-based surveillance system was used for the first time to prevent stampede-like situations during the Rath Yatra, a government release said.

The AI-based system would notify the police and the fire department in case of a fire along the route, besides alerting the police control room when too many people are gathered in a particular area, it said. PTI PJT PD NR NP