Ratna Bhandar ornaments shifted to strong room

Puri: Theprocess of shifting the valuables and ornaments stored inside the inner chamber of Ratna Bhandar, the revered treasury of the 12th-century Jagannath temple in Puri, was completed within seven hours on Thursday.

The inner chamber was reopened for the second time this week to facilitate the transfer of valuables to a temporary strong room within the temple complex. “All valuables from the inner chamber of Ratna Bhandar have been successfully relocated to a temporary strong room within the temple complex. The entire shifting process, which involved seven containers including wooden and steel almirahs and chests, took seven hours,” Arabinda Padhee, Chief of the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), told reporters.

Stating that the process has been successfully completed, Padhee said both the inner chamber and the temporary strong room have been locked and sealed as per the guidelines of the Standard Operation Procedure (SOP).

Supervisory Committee Chairman former Orissa High Court judge Justice Biswanath Rath said the ornaments and valuables inside the inner chamber were stored in seven containers comprising three wooden almirahs, two wooden chests and a steel almirah and an iron chest. All the valuables were carefully put in new containers and later shifted to the temporary strong room inside the temple complex, he said, adding that the strong room was sealed and keys were given to the Puri Collector. The keys will be kept in the treasury.

Responding to inquiries about the treasures, Justice Rath said, “The details of what we saw inside the inner chamber remain confidential. Just as one does not disclose valuables in their own home, it would be inappropriate to divulge the Lord’s treasures publicly.”

Earlier in the day, an 11-member team, including Justice Rath, ceremoniously opened the inner Ratna Bhandar at 9.51 am in the presence of Puri Gajapati Maharaja Dibyasingha Deb. Prior to unlocking the chamber, the committee sought blessings from Lord Jagannath for a smooth operation.

“We sought the blessings of Lord Jagannath for smooth completion of shifting of all valuables stored in the inner chamber of the treasury.” Justice Rath urged the media and social media influencers to refrain from spreading misinformation about the Ratna Bhandar, citing confusion among the public regarding the existence of tunnels and additional chambers.

Last time, the treasury was opened on July 14 after 46 years. On that day, the ornaments and other valuables of the outer chamber of the Ratna Bhandar were shifted to a strong room.

During the shifting process, Puri’s titular king, Gajapati Dibyasingha Deb, visited the temple and encouraged the committee members in their duties.

After visiting the inner chamber, Deb said, “The ‘Khatasheja’ (a store room) is being used as the temporary strong room. The valuables from the inner chamber of the Ratna Bhandar will be shifted to the ‘Khatasheja’ room amid tight security.”

He said the temporary strong room will be sealed and repairs of the Ratna Bhandar will be taken up by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The list of ornaments and other valuables will be prepared only after the completion of repairs,” he said.

The titular King also said, “The outer chamber of the Ratna Bhandar has been cleaned after shifting the valuables from there. The inner one requires repairs as it is being opened after 46 years.” Asked whether there is any tunnel in the inner chamber as claimed by many people, Deb said the ASI would use modern equipment to assess the condition of the chamber and the surveyor could give details about the structure.

Puri Collector Siddharth Shankar Swain said only authorised persons were allowed to enter the treasury with traditional attire during the shifting of valuables from the inner chamber. He said the entire process was videographed.

According to the SOP, CCTV cameras were installed and adequate security personnel were deployed around the temple, Puri SP Pinak Mishra said. “Snake catchers, Odisha Rapid Action Force personnel and fire services officials have been kept on standby to deal with any emergency,” an official said. The temple administration restricted the entry of devotees into the shrine from 8 am on Thursday.

“There was no snake inside Ratna Bhandar, our services were not sought,” said Snake Helpline member Suvendu Mallick after coming out of the temple. “Only authorised persons and a handful of servitors have been allowed to enter the temple when the shifting of valuables was being carried out,” he added.