Bhubaneswar

The inventory of valuables stored in the Ratna Bhandar of the Puri Jagannath temple is likely to begin early next year, Justice Biswanath Rath, chairman of the high-level committee constituted for the purpose, said on Wednesday.

While indicating that the process could commence in January, Justice Rath said the exact dates are yet to be finalised. “We are aiming to start the inventory by January. However, the dates have not been decided yet. The committee will discuss the matter on December 27,” he told reporters in Cuttack.

Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) chief Arabinda Padhee said the upcoming meeting will deliberate on the draft Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for inventorisation of ornaments and valuables stored in the Ratna Bhandar.

The last inventory of the temple treasury was conducted in 1978 and took 72 days to complete.

Justice Rath said the forthcoming exercise will involve counting all items stored in the treasury. “For security reasons, the counting will be done inside the inner chamber of the Ratna Bhandar, and the inventory will be tallied with records from 1978,” he said.

He added that the inventory will be conducted keeping the temple’s rituals in mind. “We will try to complete the process in less time than the earlier 72 days. Previously, the inventory was done using earthen lamps. With electric lighting now available, the process should be smoother,” he said.

The ornaments and other valuables will also be digitised as part of the exercise, Justice Rath added.

An SJTA official said the December 27 meeting will lay the groundwork for handling, weighing and documenting the valuables without disrupting the daily ‘Niti-Kanti’ rituals of Lord Jagannatha, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra.

The Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee, headed by the Gajapati Maharaja of Puri, Dibyasingh Deb, will review the SOP to ensure conformity with the temple’s age-old traditions.

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State Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said the inventory process may take around four months.