Puri

The authorities of the Jagannath Temple here will conduct a special inventory of the shrine's Ratna Bhandar on July 19 when the deities would be at the Gundicha Temple for a week-long stay during Rath Yatra, a senior official said.

The sibling deities of Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and Lord Balabhadra will travel from their 12th-century shrine during the chariot festival on July 16 this year for an annual week-long stay at the Shree Gundicha temple, around 2.6 km away.

They would return to the temple on July 27, ending the nine-day festival.

Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) chief administrator Arabinda Padhee said during the inventory on July 19, gold and other valuable ornaments which were removed from the idols for the Snan Yatra would be digitally documented.

The inventory would be carried out as per the standard operating procedure approved by the state government, he said, adding that the inventory of the remaining valuables stored in the inner Ratna Bhandar would be announced later.

The temple administration also said that the ongoing inventory of the Ratna Bhandar was stopped on May 23 in view of festivals like Chandan Yatra, Snan Yatra and Rath Yatra.

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Recognising the immense spiritual significance of Ratna Bhandar inventory, Padhee appealed to all servitors, committee members, stakeholders and devotees to cooperate with the administration in conducting the inventory on July 19.