Delay in Bahuda Yatra as wheels of chariot develop cracks in Odisha’s Kendrapara

By Express News Service

KENDRAPARA:  Hundreds of devotees pulling the Bramhataladhawaja of the Baladevjew temple had been in for a disappointment after round 5 wheels of the 64-feet-long chariot suffered partial injury throughout Bahuda Yatra on Sunday. 

Sources stated devotees may pull the chariot moved just a few meters from the Mausima temple because the wheels developed cracks and the repairs took a complete day. The chariot had earlier taken 4 days to achieve the Mausima temple as a result of faulty wheels. After its arrival on July 4, a workforce of carpenters reportedly repaired the broken wheels.

But in the course of the return journey of the chariot, lots of the wheels once more developed cracks. Pravat  Suar, a priest of the temple, shared that many individuals had criticised the temple administration committee for the three-day delay of the chariot in reaching the Mausima temple which is just two km away. Following the backlash, the officers involved had promised to repair all of the damages however failed. Gopal Ballav Dash, one other priest, reasoned that the wheels developed cracks as temple authorities used outdated timber. This delay, based on him, was a primary and he hoped the chariot will attain the temple on Monday.

Contacted, govt officer of the temple administration committee Balabhadra Patri stated, “The inexperienced driver was responsible for the cracks of the wheels as he moved the chariot in a wrong direction. We used new timber to build all the 16 wheels of the chariot.” The current Baladevjew temple was constructed by the king of Kujang, Raja Gopal Sandha in the course of the Maratha rule in Odisha in 1761  at Ichapur locality inside Kendrapara city.