World-renowned Puri Jagannath temple in Odisha makes dress code mandatory for devotees

• Ban on wearing shorts, ripped jeans and sleeveless on the temple premises

• Also banned are the consumption of Paan and Gutkha

(The dress code prescribes clothing-related rules to be followed inside the temple premises)

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) – In the past few months, hundreds of temple committees in Maharashtra decided to implement the dress code in the temple premises. A similar decision has been taken by the world-renowned Puri Jagannath temple in Odisha, situated 1,000 km away from Maharashtra. This decision was enforced from 1st January. Along with this, eating paan and gutkha, as well as the use of plastic items have also been banned in the temple premises. On the first day of the new year, more than 2.5 lakh devotees thronged to take the darshan of Deity Jagannath.

A temple administrative officer said that devotees wearing half pants, shorts, ripped jeans, skirts and sleeveless clothes will no longer be allowed inside the temple. The temple administration circulated an order in this regard on 9th October 2023. It mentioned that this action will be implemented from 1st January 2024.

Dress code enforced to maintain the sanctity of the temple – Temple Administration

With the enforcement of the dress code, it was noticed that male devotees coming to the temple on 1st January wore dhotis and towels, while women wore sarees or salwar kurtas. The official said that to maintain the sanctity of the temple, consumption of gutkha and paan has also been banned in the temple premises. Violators are being fined. Security personnel posted on the entrance of the temple and temple attendants are keeping a watchful eye on this.

Sanwaliya Seth Temple of Rajasthan will consider enforcing the dress code

A representative of Sanatan Prabhat contacted the chief priests of the famous Kamakhya temple in Assam in this regard. They said that the matter had not reached them yet. Darshan will continue as per the current tradition of the temple. When the management of the famous Sanwaliya Seth Temple of Shri Krishna in Rajasthan was contacted, they expressed that they would think about enforcing the dress code.

Big temples all over India should take inspiration from Puri Jagannath temple – Maharashtra Mandir Mahasangh

Maharashtra Mandir Mahasangh has welcomed the decision of the Puri Jagannath temple regarding the dress code. The coordinator of the Mahasangh Mr Sunil Ghanwat while talking to the representative of Sanatan Prabhat said that this is a commendable decision of the Puri Jagannath temple administration. Now all the big temples across India should follow this model. Maharashtra Mandir Mahasngh will continue to work for the conservation of temples and the revival of temple culture.

Editorial Viewpoint

Congratulations to the Puri Jagannath temple management for this commendable decision ! The dress code should be enforced by other temples across India.