Odisha To Sponsor Puri Jagannath Temple Darshan For Poor Devotees, Making Devotion Inclusive

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi launched a scheme on Friday to facilitate poor, widowed and elderly persons visiting the Jagannath temple in Puri at least once in their lifetime. Read on to know more about the newly launched scheme.

All About The New Scheme By The Odisha Government

According to the Hindustan Times, the state government is said to bear the cost of the visit of those people who couldn’t afford visiting the temple. As per the Economic Times, talking about the speech, CM Mohan Charan Majhi stated that he launched the Shri Jagannath Darshan Yojana for the people from Nabarangpur. He mentioned how fulfilling people’s hopes and aspirations is the highest duty of the government. He also stated that due to financial constraints or family problems, senior citizens and the economically backward sometimes don’t get to visit Jagannath Puri.

Thus, to meet their unfulfilled religious desire, the government started this scheme that will take the elderly and widowed women to the temple for a hassle-free darshan and the consumption of Mahaprasad. He also laid out an example from a character in the Ramayana, Shravan Kumar, who took his blind and elderly parents on a pilgrimage by placing them in two baskets and carrying them on his shoulders.

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All You Need To Know About The Scheme

The scheme is said to enhance the spiritual and cultural well-being of the people who couldn’t afford it. According to the Hindustan Times, the CM stated that under provisions of the SJDY, senior citizens aged 60 years to 75 years and widows up to 75 years who belong to economically weaker sections will receive free travel to the temple. The government will take care of the travel, food and other amenities.

The first phase of the initiative is said to benefit more than 500 devotees from various districts. The scheme implemented by the departments of tourism and transport was launched from Sambalpur, Bhadrak, Berhampur and Baripada.

The scheme will make all the arrangements, including the night halts for the beneficiaries from 21 districts; the devotees of the other eight districts will take a day tour of the temple.

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We think it’s a very beneficial step taken for the poor people. Let us know about your thoughts in the comments section below.

Cover Image Courtesy: Website/Satyatjagannathpuri.in