Badasahi: The annual puja of Maa Hingula was conducted with fervour at the deity’s altar in the ‘sal’ forest on Suhagpura-Chanddiha road under Badsahi block in Mayurbhanj district Saturday.
Lakhs of devotees from various parts of Mayurbhanj district as well as from neighbouring districts of Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur and like Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal were present to witness the festivities. Temple sources said approximately six lakh devotees offered puja to the deity this year.
The district administration and Hingula Trust made ample arrangements to facilitate the smooth movement and viewing of the deity of Maa Hingula.
After rituals like ‘Pahad’ and ‘Mangal Aalati’, the temple’s door remained opened for devotees.
Traffic management was done nicely with two wheelers and four wheelers being stopped at Chanddiha and Suhagpur square here.
A serpentine queue of buses, cars and bikes was seen on Betnoti-Baisinga-Dukura route that connects to the shrine. Besides offering ‘prasad’, devotees offered money and gold and silver ornaments to the deity.
Though animal sacrifice is banned, people offered pigeons, cocks and bucks.
Two inspectors, five sub inspectors, 15 ASIs, five havildars, five platoons of police force and home guards were deployed at the site while Betnoti SDPO Govind Chandra Sethy and Badasahi OIC Jayanarayan Khandai have monitored the situation.
There were designated parking spaces to avoid traffic problems. The district public relation office and Badasahi community health centre opened first aid camps. The use of plastic articles including polythene bags was strictly banned at the temple premises.
Head of the trust which runs the temple, Sunil Das thanked everyone for their cooperation in making the annual ritual a grand success.
PNN
