Rath Yatra celebrated in West Bengal

Rains failed to dampen the spirit of the devotees who were tugging the rope of decked-up chariots of Lord Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra during the annual 'Rath Yatra' hosted by the ISKCON here in the city.
In the absence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is on a tour to The Hague on an UN invitation, state panchayat and PHE minister Subrata Mukherjee, Kolkata mayor Sovan Chatterjee and Trinamool Congress MP Subrato Bakshi flagged off the Rath Yatra.
Devotees from different corners of the globe sang and danced to the beats of cymbals and drums moving through the streets of the city.

The theme of this year's Yatra is Ramanuj Acharya, an exponent of Vaishnavism whose 1000th birth anniversary is celebrated this year.
The chariot passed through Minto Park, Sarat Bose Road, Hazra Road, S P Mukherjee Road, Exide Crossing, J L Nehru Road, Outram Road to the Brigade Parade Ground, where it would be kept till July 3.
At Mahesh in Hooghly district, where the festival is considered to be the second oldest after Puri, Rath Yatra was also celebrated with traditional fervour and enthusiasm.

At Mayapur in Nadia district, the ISKCON rath yatra was inaugurated by Calcutta High Court Justice Rakesh Tiwari sweeping the ground before the cart of Lord Jagannath before it proceeded, which is a customary practice.

More than 1,000 devotees from 50 countries and close to one lakh people braved rains to pull the chariots of Lord Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra in the temple town.
The Rath Yatra was also celebrated at Mahishadal, Baruipur, Guptipara, Naihati, Rajbalhat and elsewhere in the state.