Ramp facility for wheelchair-bound devotees at Srimandir soon

Puri: Differently-abled people will now be able to take Darshan of Lord Jagannath and his divine siblings at Srimandir here as the Orissa High Court (HC) today directed the temple administration to introduce wheelchair facility at the centuries-old temple.

The High Court direction came during hearing of a matter regarding renovation work of Jagamohan inside the temple.

The court directed the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) to complete construction work of a ramp currently underway at the north gate of the temple within a month. Besides differently-abled, pregnant women, frail and elderly persons; and persons with serious medical conditions will be allowed to avail the facility at the temple.

Besides, Amicus curiae NK Mohanty submitted a status report on repair work of some temple structures damaged by cyclonic storm FANI on May 3. The report mentioned that all repair works have been completed and the ‘Dadhi Nauti’ atop Srimandir has not been damaged by the cyclone.

The next hearing on the matter will be held on September  16.