आज खोला जाएगा जगन्नाथ मंदिर का रत्न भंडार: 1 से 1:30 बजे का शुभ मुहूर्त निकाला गया; रिजर्व बैंक और पुरातत्व विभाग के प्रतिनिधि मौजूद रहेंगे

The Ratna Bhandar (treasure) of the Jagannath temple in Puri, Odisha will be opened today i.e. on July 14. The treasury of the temple was last opened 46 years ago in 1978. State Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan said on Saturday that the process of opening the inner chamber of the Ratna Bhandar will begin from Sunday.

He said that the Shrimandir has formed a committee. For transparency in the entire process, along with the members of the temple operating committee, representatives of the Reserve Bank and the Archaeological Survey of India will also be present. Digital documents of all the things in the Ratna Bhandar will be made.

According to Biswanath Rath, chairman of the high-level committee, the Ratna Bhandar will be opened during the auspicious time between 1 pm and 1.30 pm. Arvind Padhi, head of the temple management committee, said that earlier the Ratna Bhandar was opened in 1905, 1926 and 1978 and a list of precious items was prepared.

The temple’s treasury was last opened 46 years ago in 1978.

Snake catchers were called to Puri
It is said that hissing sounds are often heard from the inner Ratna Bhandar. It is also believed that a group of snakes protects the gems kept in the treasury. That is why before opening the Ratna Bhandar, the temple committee has called two persons skilled in catching snakes from Bhubaneswar to Puri, so that they are ready if needed in any untoward situation. A team of doctors will also be present to deal with the emergency.

Opening of Ratna Bhandar became a big issue in the elections
The Jagannath temple built in the 12th century is one of the four Dhams. The opening of the Ratna Bhandar was a big issue in the recent assembly and Lok Sabha elections. The BJP had promised that if the government is formed in Odisha, the treasury will be opened. Earlier in 2011, the treasury of the Padmanabha Swamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram was opened. Then a treasure worth Rs 1.32 lakh crore was found.

In 2018, the then law minister Pratap Jena had told the assembly that Ratna Bhandar has more than 12,831 Bharis (one Bhari is equal to 11.66 grams) of gold jewellery. These are studded with precious stones. Apart from this, there are 22,153 Bharis of silver utensils and other items.

Photo taken during the 2024 Rath Yatra in Puri.

Lord Jagannath’s precious jewellery is kept in Ratna Bhandar
According to the affidavit given by the Sri Jagannath Temple Administration in the High Court, there are three chambers in the Ratna Bhandar. The inner chamber of 25 x 40 square feet contains 50 kg 600 grams of gold and 134 kg 50 grams of silver. These were never used.

The outer chamber contains 95 kg 320 grams of gold and 19 kg 480 grams of silver. These are taken out on festivals. The current chamber contains 3 kg 480 grams of gold and 30 kg 350 grams of silver. These are used for daily rituals.

The door of Ratna Bhandar has not been opened since 1985
According to a report in the Economic Times, in the last century, the Ratna Bhandar of the Jagannath temple was opened in 1905, 1926 and 1978 and a list of the precious things present there was made. Reports suggest that after this, the inner part of the Ratna Bhandar was opened once in 1985, but the list was not updated.

However, the list of items present in the Ratna Bhandar between May 13 and July 13, 1978 stated that there were about 128 kg of gold and 222 kg of silver. Apart from these, many items of gold and silver were not assessed. There is no estimate of how much wealth the temple has received since 1978.

Claim of losing keys after High Court order
The demand to open the Ratna Bhandar of the temple kept rising from time to time. Many petitions were filed in the Odisha High Court regarding this. Therefore, in 2018, the Odisha High Court directed the state government to open the Ratna Bhandar, but on April 4, 2018, when a team of 16 people reached the Ratna Bhandar chamber on the orders of the court, they had to return empty-handed, because it was claimed that the key to the Ratna Bhandar was lost.

The investigation report was not made public
When the key was not found, there was an uproar after which the then Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik ordered a judicial inquiry on 4 June 2018. The inquiry committee submitted its report related to the key to the government on 29 November 2018, but the government did not make it public and the key could not be traced. In August last year, the Jagannath Temple Management Committee had recommended to the state government that the Ratna Bhandar be opened during the annual Rath Yatra of 2024.

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