Bhubaneswar: The state government has deputed senior IAS officer Aravind Agrawal for overall supervision of the Car Festival at Odisha’s Puri town.

The General Administration and Public Grievance Department of the state government today issued an order in this regard.

The decision to depute Agrawal, who is now working as the Commissioner-cum-Secretary to Higher Education Department, for the overall supervision of the annual mega festival at Puri came in the wake of a tragic stampede near the Srigundicha temple in the early hours of today.

At least three persons were killed and several others were injured in the incident, that took place a day after the Ratha Jatra.

The stampede occurred when thousands of people congregated at Saradhabali near Srigundicha temple to have a glimpse of Lord Jagannath and his siblings Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra on their respective chariots.

Soon after the incident, the state government transferred Puri Collector Siddharth Shankar Swain and SP Vinit Agrawal.

IAS officer Chanchal Rana has been appointed as the new Collector of Puri while IPS officer Pinak Mishra was made the new SP.

It is worth mentioning here that Aravind Agrawal, a 2007 batch Odisha cadre IAS officer, had served as the Collector of Puri in the past.