Bhubaneswar: Anticipating a huge rush of devotees in the Jagannath Temple here during the month of Kartika, the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has imposed restrictions on the entry of devotees to the shrine. Coinciding with the beginning of Karthik month from October 18, the devotees will be allowed to enter the shrine only through Singhadwara (Lion’s Gate) and Western gate or Vyaghradwara.
The other three gates, except for the Singhadwara, can be used by devotees to step out of the shrine, Chief administrator of SJTA, Arabinda Padhee posted on X.
The restriction won’t apply to the temple servitors and their family members. At present, the devotees enter the temple through all four gates of the shrine. Notably, all four gates of the shrine were opened for devotees on June 13, a day after Odisha’s new BJP Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi took oath.
Prior to this, only the Lion’s Gate, which was the main entrance on the east side of the temple, was kept open for entry and exit of devotees while the Tiger, Horse and Elephant gates situated on the west, south and northern sides of the shrine, had remained closed since March 2020.
