Two pilgrims lost their lives in separate incidents during the annual Ratha Yatra celebrations in Odisha’s Puri, while several other devotees who fell ill were provided treatment and subsequently discharged, the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) confirmed on Thursday.
In an official statement, the CMO noted that seven people experienced sudden health complications during the event and were swiftly rescued by on-duty emergency personnel before being rushed to a nearby hospital.
The CMO said, “During the course of the festival, seven persons felt unwell and were immediately evacuated by the deployed personnel and shifted to the hospital without delay. Among them, one male devotee aged above 60 years unfortunately succumbed, and the exact cause of death is being ascertained by the concerned authorities. Separately, in an unrelated incident, a male devotee aged above 35 years suffered a cardiac arrest and, despite immediate medical intervention, unfortunately passed away.”
The CMO also said that a number of pilgrims fell sick due to exposure to rain-related illnesses during the festival. According to the statement, they were admitted to the hospital, administered appropriate medical treatment, and later discharged after their condition improved.
The statement added that many other devotees who felt unwell due to the continuous downpour were treated at the hospital and allowed to leave after recovering completely.
Even with relentless rain and gloomy weather throughout the day, the grand festival drew an estimated 8 to 9 lakh devotees from across Odisha, various parts of India, and overseas, reflecting the unparalleled faith of devotees in the deities.
Speaking to reporters, Odisha Health Minister Dr Mukesh Mahaling said, “I would like to clarify that there has been no stampede during the Rath Yatra. Regarding the death of a person due to suffocation, a post-mortem is being conducted. You can see the large crowds during the Yatra, and there are arrangements in place to fully serve the people. The allegations made by the BJD are baseless. I want to reiterate: there has been no stampede during the Yatra.”
All the traditional religious rituals linked to the festival, including the ceremonial pulling of the three grand wooden chariots, were carried out smoothly and finished right on schedule.
The Odisha state government had put in place extensive, multi-layered arrangements to ensure the grand event passed off successfully.
Extensive planning was undertaken well in advance, coordinating across several key departments, including the Police, Health, Fire Services, Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Transport, Municipal Administration, Public Health Engineering, and Energy.
Continuous monitoring, the deployment of robust security units, widespread CCTV coverage, public address systems, strict traffic control, sanitation drives, clean drinking water stalls, quick-reaction teams, and temporary medical camps ensured that pilgrims could celebrate safely and comfortably.
Given the massive turnout of devotees and the non-stop rain, several cases of physical exhaustion, dehydration, breathing difficulties, and minor health issues were reported as the day progressed.
Prakash Mishra, Advisor to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, said, “There was no stampede. In such a massive crowd, some people do get breathless. We had seven such cases here; unfortunately, we couldn’t save one of them, but the others are fine.”
The Jagannath Rath Yatra, regarded as one of India’s largest and most sacred religious festivals, takes place annually in the coastal town of Puri. During the grand procession, Lord Jagannath, alongside his siblings Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra, travels in massive chariots from the Jagannath Temple to the Gundicha Temple, with hundreds of thousands of pilgrims pulling the heavy chariots to earn spiritual blessings.
This year’s Ratha Yatra, marking the 149th annual Rath Yatr, commenced on July 16, with the nine-day festivities scheduled to wrap up on July 24 with the Bahuda Yatra. The deities are scheduled to ceremonially re-enter the Jagannath Temple on July 27.
