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Puri: Close to five lakh devotees are expected to take holy dip at Chandrabhaga, adjacent to the Sun temple, on the occasion of ‘Magha Saptami’ on Thursday.
The pilgrims spend night near the beach, prepare food for them in earthen pots and worship the three deities—Ishaneswar, Dakshineswar and Triveniswar followed by the holy dip before dawn.
“We have come with our family members to take holy dip here,” a devotee Basudev Sahu said.
Mythology suggests that Shamba, son of Lord Krishna, had been cured of leprosy after a holy dip in the water body on this day. Since then people take holy dip at Chandrabhaga to get rid of ailments.
Anticipating huge congregation, district administration has taken adequate measures to deal with any untoward incident. Around 25 platoons police force have been deployed to maintain law and order. Besides, police assistance booths have been set up for smooth coordination and passage of the event.
“We have categorized the security arrangements in three parts---security for pilgrims, setting up control rooms and traffic control,” Puri SP Sanjay Kumar said.
Local fishermen, coast guards and ODRAF teams have been strategically placed to help out people in case of drowning.
