Puri Gajapati and chairman of the Shree Jagannath Temple Management Committee, Dibyasingha Deb, has sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention to dissuade Iskcon from holding off-calendar Rath Yatra celebrations. Deb expressed concern over plans for around 80 “off-calendar” Rath Yatra and related rituals by Iskcon worldwide before December. ADVERTISEMENTAt the meeting, Deb said he had taken up the matter with Modi and that the temple administration would also approach the Union ministers of culture and external affairs. The new Jagannath Temple calendar will come into effect from the upcoming Pana Sankranti on Tuesday. The temple administration expects all Jagannath temples across the country to align their rituals and festivals with those observed at the 12th-century shrine in Puri.

Source: The Telegraph April 13, 2026 03:05 UTC