Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has approved the proposal for creation of a dedicated Special Security Battalion for security to Jagannath temple in Puri and devotee facilitation.
The chief minister approved the proposal after discussion with the stakeholders based on the feedback given by 5T and Nabin Odisha chairman VK Pandian.
It was pointed out during the discussion that Jagannath temple draws thousands of devotees every day. In the post-COVID period, the daily footfall of devotees was estimated to be about 50,000. It doubles and triples during the weekends and on important religious occasions.
The temple is expected to witness substantial increase in flow of devotees after dedication of the Heritage Corridor Project – Srimandir Parikrama Prakalp to the public.
Considering these, the Special Security Battalion would be formed. The new battalion would have around 1190 personnel and would be placed under the command and control of Puri SP.
It would have the primary responsibility of providing full-proof security to the temple. Its personnel will be specially trained for better crowd management and devotee facilitation for ensuring a hassle-free and orderly darshan by them.
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