Bhubaneswar: The govt has directed the Puri district administration to drastically curtail the number of cordon passes during the upcoming Rath Yatra to ensure smoother crowd management around the chariots.Cordon passes, which grant proximity access to the inner and outer cordons of the chariots, are typically issued to govt personnel, journalists, servitors, volunteers and others.“Effective and flawless crowd management is our priority and as a precautionary measure to prevent incidents like the stampede last year, (on the third day of Rath Yatra on June 29) which claimed three lives outside Gundicha temple, we have decided to regulate the cordon passes this time to ensure decongestion near chariots,” a senior govt officer said on Sunday. The officer’s statement comes a day after chief secretary Anu Garg reviewed Rath Yatra arrangements.Traditionally, the district collector issues common passes valid for both Rath Yatra and Bahuda celebrations to a wide range of people, including officials, political representatives, temple servitors, media personnel, volunteers and cultural performers. These passes allow privileged access to the cordon area surrounding the chariots.The 2025 festival faced unprecedented challenges when unrestricted pass distribution led to severe crowding near Lord Jagannath’s chariot and the ceremonial chariot-pulling ritual had to be resumed the next day, drawing sharp criticism from opposition parties and devotees over mismanagement.Responding to a recent RTI query, the Puri administration revealed that 2,500 cordon passes and 22,250 other passes were issued during last year’s Rath Yatra, with Rs 87,900 spent on printing and distribution.A police official suggested stricter limits – a maximum of 300 people, mostly servitors, in the inner cordon and 200 in the outer cordon.“Every year, passes are distributed indiscriminately to volunteers, VIPs, politicians and their workers, creating crowd control issues and endangering the security of this world-famous festival. This misuse must stop,” Debasis Das, a lawyer in Puri, said.The administration has assured strict compliance with the govt’s directive. “Access will be restricted to only those whose presence is essential for the ceremony’s conduct,” a district official said. He added that multiple enforcement teams will be deployed to verify credentials and identity documents before allowing entry into the cordon area.
