Puri Rath Yatra: Lord Balabhadra idol falls on servitors, 9 injured

NEW DELHI: At least nine servitors of the Jagannath temple were injured when the idol of Lord Balabhadra accidentally fell on them during the Rath Yatra festival in Puri on Tuesday.
The incident occurred when the idol was being transported from the chariot to a temple, an official told news agency PTI.
Siddharth Shankar Swain, the Puri Collector, said that five of the nine injured were hospitalised, while the remaining four suffered minor injuries.
The accident took place during the 'Pahandi' ritual, which involves bringing the heavy wooden idol down from Lord Balabhadra's chariot to be taken to the Gundicha temple. It was reported that those responsible for carrying the idol lost control of it during the process.
Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed his concern about the incident and instructed Prithiviraj Harichandan, the law minister, to visit the site immediately and take necessary measures.
The Puri Jagannath temple falls under the jurisdiction of the state government's law department.
The chief minister also wished for the speedy recovery of the injured servitors.
Following the mishap, the ritual of the sibling deities - Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra, and Lord Balabhadra - resumed, and all the idols were successfully transported inside the Gundicha temple.
The deities will remain in the Gundicha Temple until the 'Bahuda Jatra' or the return car festival, which is scheduled for July 15.