The Rukuna Rath (chariot) of Lord Lingaraj was halted at Badheibanka Chhak ahead of its destination Mausi Maa Temple, due to a delay in various rituals on Wednesday. The annual car festival of Lord Lingaraj will resume and the chariot will begin its journey towards Mausi Maa Temple tomorrow morning.
As per servitors, the delay in the temple rituals happened due to delay in chariot construction. As per the decision taken by the temple administration and Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), chariot pulling was scheduled to take place at 3:30pm.
However, rituals were delayed by 1 hour and 45 minutes and the chariot pulling finally started at around 5:15pm in the evening. Subsequently, chariot pulling was halted for the day and the chariot will resume its journey towards Mausi Maa Temple on Thursday morning.
Meanwhile, all necessary security arrangements were made with the deployment of 12 platoons of police force to maintain law and order. A huge number of devotees participated in the chariot pulling in a peaceful manner.
Drinking water arrangements were also made for the devotees.
(Reported by Archana Satpathy)