Rath Yatra

At least two persons died and over 130 were injured in two different incidents during Lord Jagannath's Rath Yatra in Odisha, officials said on Monday. A resident of Bolangir district died allegedly due to suffocation in a stampede-like situation on Sunday during the Rath Yatra in Puri, a health official said. "When we put him in the ambulance, his pulse was running. We took him to the hospital and gave him CPR. However, doctors declared him brought dead," said Sushant Kumar Patnaik, assistant commandant of St John ambulance service. According to sources, the devotee fainted on Grand Road while pulling the chariot of Lord Balabhadra. He was immediately rushed to the Puri District Headquarters Hospital, where the doctor declared him brought. Expressing grief over his death, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh for the next of kin of the deceased. He also instructed officials concerned to ensure the best available medical care for the injured ...

Chief Minister Majhi announced Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia to the kin of the deceased who died during chariot pulling in Puri

The 147th Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath rolled out early Sunday morning in Gujarat's Ahmedabad city where a large number of devotees flocked the procession route to pay obeisance to the deity. The raths (chariots) of Lord Jagannath, his brother Balbhadra and sister Subhadra are pulled by Khalashi community members as per the age-old tradition. The Rath Yatra is taken out on the Ashadhi Beej (second day of Hindu Ashadh month) every year. Union Home Minister Amit Shah performed the 'mangla aarti' and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel performed 'pahind vidhi', the ritual of cleaning the way using a golden broom, as the chariots rolled out from the 400-year-old Lord Jagannath temple in Jamalpur area. A senior police official earlier said more than 22,000 security personnel will guard the event and some balloon-mounted cameras will also be deployed to keep a watch on the people's movement. As many as 4,500 personnel have been deployed to walk with the procession along the entire 16

The Rath Yatra, also known as the Chariot festival, is believed to be as old as the Jagannath Temple in Puri. This year, Lord Jagannath Yatra will take place on July 7

The 147th edition of the annual Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath will take place on July 7 in Ahmedabad where more than 18,000 security personnel will be deployed to guard the event which draws lakhs of devotees, officials said. Senior police officials will keep a close watch on the procession using 1,733 body-worn cameras linked to a control room. Besides, 20 drones and 96 surveillance cameras have been installed at 47 locations on the route, an official release said on Wednesday. Nearly 1,400 CCTV cameras installed by shopkeepers on the route will also be used for live surveillance, it said. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Wednesday reviewed the security preparedness for the mega religious event at a meeting which was attended by various officials including Minister of State for Home Harsh Sanghavi and Director General of Police Vikas Sahay. Ahmedabad Commissioner of Police GS Malik made an elaborate presentation during the meeting on various security aspects of the Rath .

The main aspect of the Niladri Bije ritual is the heavenly love and affection between Lord Jagannath and His wife Goddess Laxmi

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday expressed grief over the death of seven people when a Rath or ceremonial chariot of Lord Jagannath came in contact with a high tension wire in Tripura's Unakoti district during the 'Ulta Rath Yatra' or return car festival. The incident happened on Wednesday when thousands of people were pulling the chariot, made of iron and heavily decorated came in contact with a 133 kv overhead cable in Uttar Pabiacherra in Kumarghat. Parts of the Rath immediately caught fire and people fell on the road with their bodies on flame, Patnaik in a statement said Wednesday's Tripura incident was very unfortunate and he expressed condolence to the bereaved families. He wished speedy recovery of the injured persons. While six persons died due to electrocution on the spot, one died while being taken to hospital. Sixteen other people were injured in the incident.

Seven people died and 16 others sustained severe burn injuries after being electrocuted during the Ulta Rath Yatra in Tripura's Unakoti district on Wednesday

Seven people died and 16 others sustained injuries after being electrocuted during the Ulta Rath Yatra in Tripura's Unakoti district on Wednesday

Manipur skipped annual Rath Yatra procession with chariots, which has been a public festival for 200 years, in view of the ongoing ethnic violence, which has so far claimed more than 120 lives

Idols of Lord Jagannath and his siblings were placed on their respective chariots on Tuesday, following spectacular ceremonial Pahandi rituals

Ruling BJP in Karnataka is all set to take out a 'Rath Yatra' in the state after the budget session ahead of Assembly elections

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to flag off two BJP rath yatras from North Tripura and South Tripura districts on Thursday, a party leader said. BJP state president Rajib Bhattacharjee said Shah will arrive in Agartala around 11 am and head to Dharmanagar in North Tripura district to launch the yatra and address a public rally. He will then visit Sabroom in South Tripura district to flag off another rath yatra and address a public meeting, Bhattacharjee said. Shah will depart from Tripura on Thursday evening. Bhattacharjee said the Jana Viswas Yatra', aimed at highlighting the state government's achievements ahead of the upcoming assembly elections, will travel 1,000 km covering all the 60 constituencies. A total of 100 rallies and roadshows will be held, and the yatra will conclude on January 12, he said, adding, BJP president J P Nadda will join the programme on the last day. Meanwhile, Shah's flight could not land at the Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport in Agartala on ..

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel performed the 'Pahind Vidhi' - a symbolic ritual of cleaning the way for the chariots using a golden broom before the start of the Rath Yatra

The nine-day yatra (pulling of chariots) of Lord Jagannath will begin later on Friday in Odisha's Puri

The Ratha Yatra, also known as the Chariot Celebration of Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra, and Lord Balabhadra, is the most prominent Hindu festival in the Puri city of Odisha

As the countdown for the much-awaited Ratha Yatra of Lord Jagannath begins, thousands of devotees from across the country have started thronging this pilgrim town

Around 1 mn people are expected to gather for the festival in the temple town from across the country, and some foreign nations, says an official

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik extended his best wishes to all on the occasion of 'Neeladri Bije' and 'Rasagola Divas' on Saturday

In pictures: Jagannath Rath Yatra begins across the country

In order to prevent any congregation, a curfew-like shutdown has been imposed across Puri district from 9 pm on Monday till 2 pm on Wednesday