Jagannath temple repair work from December

The repair work of Jagamohana, the hall facing the sanctum sanctorum of the 12th century Shree Jagannath temple in Puri will be carried out in December, temple administration said today.
A decision to carry out the work after the Hindu month of Kartick was taken a joint meeting of Sree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) and the technical committee of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
A final decision over the shifting the idols of the presiding deities will be taken after a meeting with Chhattisha Nijog (priests union), SJTA chief Suresh Chandra Mohapatra said.
The director general of ASI will visit to the temple next month to review the need of repairing of the Jagamohana, sources said.

The Chhattisa Nijog, which had met on August 17, had failed to take a decision on the relocation of the presiding deities to facilitate repair of the badly damaged Jagamohana.
The priests had opposed the repair of the Ratna Bhandar (treasury) and the method employed by ASI in conducting repairs of the temple.
In a recent letter to SJTA, ASI had sought permission to relocate the presiding deities as soon as possible as repair works were urgently needed. The ASI director general had asked SJTA to evacuate Jagamohana area of the temple, which is in need of immediate repair.