Lagatar24 Desk
Puri: The ‘Ratna Bhandar’ (treasure trove) of the Shri Jagannath Temple in Puri was reopened on Sunday after more than four decades. This historic event followed the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) issued by the Odisha government. Approval for the reopening was granted on Saturday after the government completed an inventorization of the stored valuables, including pieces of jewellery.
To mark this significant occasion, the Office of the Chief Minister of Odisha expressed its reverence on X (formerly Twitter), stating, “Jai Jagannath Oh Lord! You are rhythmic. The whole world is oppressed by your desire. You are the heartbeat of the orthodox nation… The four doors of the temple were first opened at your will. Today, after 46 years of your will, the gem was opened with a great purpose… I strongly believe that this great work will be successful…”
Special boxes were brought to the temple ahead of the reopening of the Ratna Bhandar. Arabinda Padhee, Chief of the Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), confirmed that the Odisha government had approved the SOPs for the opening. He emphasized that the process would be conducted according to the set guidelines, involving authorized representatives from various ‘sewa’ groups, officials from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and representatives of Shri Gajapati Maharaj. The entire proceedings will be video recorded for official records and maintained confidentially.
Padhee outlined the three steps in the SOPs for opening and inventorizing the valuables in the Ratna Bhandar. “The first step is the opening of the outer Ratna Bhandar. For the inner Ratna Bhandar, another set of guidelines applies. There is also a temporary, strong room… Once the shift from Ratna Bhandar to the strong room is made, we will inventory the valuables. We seek the blessings of Mahaprabhu that the Ratna Bhandar gets opened easily, and the subsequent steps will follow,” he explained.
The ‘Ratna Bhandar’ was scheduled to be opened at 1:28 pm on Sunday. Justice Biswanath Rath, Chairman of the Inspection Committee, said, “As per the discussion in the meeting and the suggestions of the ‘Purohits’ and the ‘mukti mandap’, the right time for the opening of the Ratna Bhandar is 1:28 pm.” He acknowledged the challenge of the process, given the unknown condition of the Ratna Bhandar since it was last opened in 1985. “We decided to go ahead with the opening and taking care of the ornaments… The process will be carried out with two sets of video recordings and there will be two certifications… We’ll open the locks today, in any case,” Justice Rath stated.
Odisha Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan highlighted that the inventory work would include a representative from the Reserve Bank of India, and a digital catalogue would be created after the counting of the ornaments. “We had requested the involvement of the Reserve Bank of India in this… A digital catalogue will be created with photographs, weights, and other details of the ornaments. This digital catalogue will serve as a reference document,” he said.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which maintains the 12th-century shrine, will carry out repair works in the Ratna Bhandar. The last opening of the Treasury occurred in 1978, making this a historic and significant event for the Jagannath Temple and its devotees.
