The Indian Express photo.
Bhubaneswar: In Odisha’s Puri, where the annual Rath Yatra is going on, a devotee died of suffocation while pulling the chariot of Lord Balabhadra on Sunday. Puri is crowded with more than a million devotees across the globe to attend the annual spiritual event, The Indian Express reported.
Following the collapse of the man, who is yet to be identified, he was rushed to the district hospital in Puri, but doctors declared him dead.
After the incident, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh to the family of the man.
Meanwhile, many others got injured in a stampede-like situation on the Grand Road, and they were rushed to the district hospital. State health minister Mukesh Mahaling visited them to take stock of the situation. Mahaling said, “We are trying to ascertain the identity of the deceased. I have personally monitored the health infrastructure and directed the hospital authorities to be ready to ensure proper healthcare to the injured,” TIE quoted.
Rath Yatra features three huge idols being placed on three decorated chariots after the Pahandi ritual. Millions of devotees pull the chariots for around 3 kilometres on the Bada Danda (Grand Road) of Puri town. The idols are taken to the Gundicha Temple, considered the deities’ birthplace, where they stay till the Bahuda Yatra (returning car festival), TIE reports.
Traditionally, Lord Balabhadra’s chariot leads the Rath Yatra while sibling deities Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra follow.
It was only last week, at least 116 people, including 106 women and seven children, lost their lives in a stampede at a religious event in Uttar Pradesh's Hathras.