Despite the completion of all rituals on time, if Lord Balabhadra’s chariot Taladhwaja failed to roll, it was due to cordon mismanagement, which played the spoilsport. The administration and police failed to manage the cordon area, leading to unprecedented delay in rolling of chariots.
When situation went out of control, the devotees had to be forcibly evicted, leading to injuries and illness. It all started during the pulling of Taladhwaja. Devotees were highly disappointed when Lord Jagannatha’s Nandighosa could not roll till 7:40 PM. It was then decided to pull the chariot as a symbolic ritual.
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Assault on journalists, was another big failure, as the journalists moving with the I&PR Department, had to face this situation. Massive distribution of cordon passes is one of the biggest reasons behind the chaos.
Instead of putting a volt face and shrugging off the issues, the Ministers and Administration must learn from the mistakes and go for course correction. Overcrowding can be cited as a factor, but not an excuse.
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