After a long wait of 47 years, the Ratna Bhandar (treasure trove) of Jagannath Temple will open on Sunday. As per the temple authorities, the bhandar will open following normal standard procedure at 1:28 pm on Sunday. Jagannath Temple, located in Odisha’s Puri, is one of the main pilgrimage centres in the world.
Speaking to ANI, Inspection Committee Chairman Justice Biswanath Rath said, “As scheduled, and as known to everybody, the Government has already come out with the required SOPs in three parts- one is for the opening of the Ratna Bhandar, then taking custody of ornaments and valuables stacked in both the ‘bhandars’ section-wise to pre-allocated rooms inside the Garbha Griha.
He added that the temple premises had convened a meeting earlier today wherein they decided to proceed with operating and taking care of the ornaments. As per the conclusions of the meetings and suggestions of the purohits and mukti mandap, the right time to open the treasure trove was decided to be 1.28 pm.