Puri: This holy city which saw several beautification drives in recent years has several holy tanks that are in a pathetic condition.
A case in point is the Parvati Sagar tank.
After visiting the deities in the Jagannath Temple, devotees, pilgrims and tourists often visit mutts and holy tanks scattered all across the city.
Among the tanks that attract these guests is Parvati Sagar tank, near SriLokanath temple, one of the famous Shiva temples in the city.
This tank is surrounded by a boundary wall. Devotees wash their hands and feet here before visiting the Sri Lokanath temple. In the holy month of Shravan, BolBom devotees take bath here. The northern side part of the boundary wall had been weak for a long time. Finally the portion of the wall measuring about 100 feet caved in October 20, 2017, not being able to stand up to incessant rainfall.
While just three months are left for the boundary wall collapse incident to complete three years, no step has so far been taken to get the caved-in wall repaired. As a result of which garbage is flowing into the tank, hurting sentiments of hundreds of local residents and devotees.
When asked, SriLokanath Temple manager Apachch Parida said the temple and the tank are located in a comparatively lower area in the city. There are natural sand deposits on three outer sides of this tank. They are constantly putting on extra pressure on the boundary wall. In rainy season this pressure gets double. The caved-in portion has already been measured and estimated. Repair work will begin after rainy season, he added.
PNN