Rukuna Rath set to roll today, priests assure cooperation

BHUBANESWAR: The temple city of Bhubaneswar is all set to host the annual car festival of Lord Lingaraj on Wednesday after priests agreed to cooperate with the temple administration for smooth conduct of the rituals. Thousands of devotees are expected to pull the chariot of Lord Lingaraj on Wednesday.
Rukuna Rath is called “analeuta” as the chariot does not take a turn during the return journey.
Going by convention, the Rukuna chariot is pulled from the back without taking a turn. The altar of the deities is changed on the day of the homecoming festival. The 35-feet high chariot has two doors and it is pulled from the opposite side during the return journey. The chariot covers 2.5 km distance from Lingaraj Temple to Mausima Temple in the Old Town area of the city.
Though the temple administration has issued timings for conducting the rituals, priests said they will not abide by directions till their demands are fulfilled. The priests have been demanding implementation of Lingaraj temple ordinance, finalising the rights over rituals among nijogs (priests’ associations), providing them rights over lands belonging to Lord Lingaraj and resolving the dispute between sevayats of Lingaraj and Kapileswar temples.
“The administration has taken the priests for granted and not taking our issues or demands seriously. Even the Rukuna Rath festival is slowly losing its charm due to neglect and mismanagement of the authorities,” said Kamalakanta Badu, secretary, Badu Nijog.
In the preparatory meeting, it was decided that pulling of chariot will start at 3.30 pm on Wednesday.