‘Digha’s Jagannath Temple to be inaugurated on Akshaya Tritiya’

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced on Wednesday that the Jagannath Temple in Digha will be inaugurated on April 30, 2025 (Akshaya Tritiya).

Banerjee visited the site of the temple and reviewed its work progress. “The Rathayatra will start from Digha’s Jagannath Temple from 2025. I will donate Rs 5 lakh from my bank account for the temple’s ceremonial golden broom,” Banerjee said. The broom is used to clean the chariots of the deities (Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra) before the annual Rath Yatra in Puri.

Banerjee announced the formation of a trustee board for management of the temple with state Chief Secretary Manoj Pant at the helm. Members would be the District Magistrate and police superintendent, representatives from ISKCON and Sanatan religion and a top priest who performs puja at Puri’s Jagannath Temple. There will be local priests in the trustee board too. ISKCON Kolkata vice-president Radharaman Das, who accompanied Banerjee during her visit on Wednesday, has been included in the temple management committee. Banerjee said she will not be part of the trustee board. Reiterating that she doesn’t want to draw any comparison with the Puri Jagannath Temple except for the fact that it has a similar design to the one in Odisha, the Chief Minister said: “The Puri temple was erected during the ‘rajas’ (kings) rule. This has been made by the state government. There will be separate rooms for distribution of bhog, storage, guest accomodation and a restroom. There will be space earmarked for the self-help-groups for selling their hand-made items. Unlike Puri where khaja is offered, khirer goja, gujia and peda (types of sweets) will be given at this temple.”

The Bengal government has spent around Rs 250 crore for the project. The temple is being built on a 20-acre plot and is in close proximity to the seashore.

Banerjee said that the flag hoisting ritual (popularly known as dhaja tola in Bengali parlance) which is a daily customary ritual in Puri will also be followed at Digha’s Jagannath Temple too. Experts from the Puri temple will be roped in for the ritual in Digha.

According to her, there will be a health centre, police outpost and fire fighting infrastructure too inside the temple premises.

It was in 2019 when Banerjee had announced the setting up of Jagannath temple in Digha as a replica of the famous one at Puri. However, after Covid situation came under control in May 2022, West Bengal Housing and Infrastructure Development Corporation (WBHIDCO) started construction of the temple. Banerjee thanked the HIDCO for completing 90 per cent of the construction.

Radharaman Das’s presence at the site drew criticism from Suvendu Adhikari, Leader of Opposition, who questioned why the ISKCON official did not oppose the replication of the Puri temple. He said the Jagannath Temple in Puri was one of the Char Dhams and “replicating” it was unacceptable.

Adhikari argued that public funds should not be used for constructing religious sites. The BJP leader warned that he would bring priests from Puri and hold a religious gathering in Digha to expose the Trinamool government’s actions.