Bhubaneswar: Even as hotels, restaurants, eateries and some temples feel the LPG pinch owing to the conflict in West Asia, the Jagannath Temple in Puri continues to be a sanctuary for hungry souls.The 12th century shrine, which traditionally prepares its Mahaprasad using firewood, remains unaffected by the crisis and has witnessed a surge in demand from tourists, devotees as well as locals.The Suar Mahasuar Nijog, the association of servitors who prepare the Mahaprasad, reported that demand has risen sharply in the last 2-3 days in the wake of disruptions in the supply of commercial cooking gas.“While we had been cooking Mahaprasad (Abadha) for about 30,000 devotees daily, the consumption has now increased to 40,000,” said Nijog secretary Narayan Mahasuar, noting that footfall at the shrine’s Ananda Bazar — where Mahaprasad is sold and can also be eaten — has grown during lunch and dinner hours.Hoteliers, too, confirmed the trend, explaining that guests now rely on the temple’s Mahaprasad as most restaurants are closed. “Our guests are now mostly relying on Jagannath Temple’s Mahaprasad with most restaurants shut,” said Debasis Kumar, a Puri-based hotelier and executive member of the hotel and restaurant association of Odisha.Devotees echoed the sentiment, noting that the crisis has unexpectedly revived traditional practices. “It’s almost as if Lord Jagannath himself ensured that people would not go hungry even though restaurants are running short of cooking gas. During our two-day stay in the hotel, we bought Mahaprasad, which is a bliss,” said Binayak Mishra, a devotee from Rourkela.Currently, a normal meal of rice, dal and curry costs around Rs 150, while a special meal with additional items like dalma, mahur and saga is priced at Rs 250.Each day, 80-100 quintals of wood is required to run one of the largest temple kitchens in the country, which has the capacity to serve up to one lakh devotees.“By Lord Jagannath’s blessings, we are able to manage the wood required to cook food. Cooking gas is not allowed in the temple,” said Arabinda Kumar Padhee, chief administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration.The servitors have urged SJTA to ensure sufficient supply of firewood. As per tradition, timber from dismantled Rath Yatra chariots is used in the temple kitchen, supplemented by casuarina wood from forest department depots and private sources.
