Bhubaneswar, Feb 18: The Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri will be temporarily closed for public darshan for five hours tomorrow to accommodate the Banakalagi Niti, a significant ritual involving the painting of the deities’ idols.

According to the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), access to view Lord Jagannath and his siblings will be restricted from 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM on Wednesday.

This ritual is scheduled to take place on the auspicious occasion of Phalguna Krishna Shashthi Tithi, as communicated by the SJTA via their social media channels. The temple's darshan will be closed following the completion of the ‘Dwitiya Bhogamandap’ ritual, marking the start of this sacred ceremony.

During the Banakalagi Niti, a variety of special materials such as kasturi, harital, karpura, kesar, kalasankha, and dhalasankha will be utilized to create the natural paints that adorn the idols. The sanctum sanctorum (garbhagruha) will remain inaccessible to the public, with only designated servitors, led by Dattamahapatra, permitted to enter and perform the important ritual.

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