Fire breaks out at temple

Puri: The idols of Lord Jagannath and his siblings Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra were destroyed reportedly after a fire broke out at a temple at Kandgoda village under Brahmagiri police station limits in Odisha’s Puri district on Thursday.

As informed by sources, the servitors of the temple had reportedly closed the doors after performing the Sandhya Alati rituals of the Holy Trinity and daily sankirtan at around 8 PM.

However, after an hour of closure of the temple gates, some people noticed smoke emitting from the shrine and informed the servitors about it.

Without any delay, the temple servitors along with others rushed to the temple and noticed a fire after opening the door. Some puja items along with the idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra were reportedly destroyed following the fire mishap.

While the exact cause of the fire is yet to be known, the preliminary reports suggested that the blaze might have been triggered by an earthen lamp inside the temple. The fire was brought under control and the local police also had arrived at the spot.

Meanwhile, some local residents alleged that the fire mishap occurred due the negligence of the sevayats of the temple. The incident, however, has become a subject of discussion in the area now.