Odisha govt. orders probe into Puri Jagannath priests’ role in West Bengal temple ceremony

Digha Jagannath Temple illuminates with devotees on its inauguration day
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Odisha government has ordered a probe into allegations that leftover timber procured for the Nabakalebara rituals at the Jagannath Temple in Puri was used to carve the idols of the sibling deities at a new Jagannath temple complex in Digha, West Bengal, built at an estimated cost of Rs. 250 crore.

In a letter addressed to Arabinda Padhee, Chief Administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), Puri, Odisha Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said, “Use of sacred Daru (wood procured for the Nabakalebara rituals) in making of idols in Digha Jagannath Temple is unacceptable.”

Mr. Harichandan also remarked that it was also improper for sevayats (traditional priests of the Puri Jagannath Temple) to participate in the consecration ceremony of newly constructed Jagannath Temple at Digha and naming of the temple as Jagannath Dham.

“This has hurt sentiments of Jagannath devotees and 4.5 crore people of Odisha. The SJTA should conduct an internal probe and bring the truth to public. If someone is found guilty or is knowingly involved in wrongdoing, they should be penalized after obtaining due permission from the State government,” said the Law Minister.

There are two sets of idols installed in the Digha Temple – one made of stone and another of neem timber.

Even as controversy erupted over the naming of new temple complex at Digha in West Bengal as Jagannath Dham and the alleged use of Nabakalebara wood in idols, Ramakrushna Dasmohapatra, a prominent sevayat, admitted to have attended the consecration event.

“Establishment of Jagannath Temple outside Puri is not new. When we were invited to Digha Temple, we raised objections to stone-carved Jagannath idols. Sibling deities Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra are always made of timber. On our advice, another set of idols were installed in the temple. The idols made from neem timber were carved in Puri and used in the Digha Temple,” said Mr. Dasmohapatra.

On controversy of naming the temple complex as ‘Dham’, the sevayat said, “the Digha Temple complex cannot be a ‘Dham’ as the Puri Jagannath Temple is one of four sacred centres or ‘Dhams’ of Hindu religion in the country. Both the States should mutually discuss the matter and erase the name ‘Dham’ from the Digha Temple complex.”

Nabakalebara of the Jagannath Temple in Puri is a sacred ritual that marks the symbolic death and rebirth of Lord Jagannath. It involves the creation and installation of new wooden idols of Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra, and Sudarshan, while the old ones are ritually buried within the temple premises at Koili Baikuntha. Held at irregular intervals—typically every 12 to 19 years—this elaborate ceremony is one of the most significant events in the Jagannath cult. The last Nabakalebara was observed in 2015. Selection and procurement of timbers were held with thousands of devotees thronging around the neem trees before they were felled and brought to Puri in 2015.

Digha Jagannath Temple, a replica of the 12th-century world famous shrine in Puri, was inaugurated on the occasion of Akshaya Tritiya on April 30.