Puri, March 2 The Shree Jagannath Temple authorities decided on Monday to begin the long-awaited inventory of the Ratna Bhandar (treasury) at the 12th-century shrine, after a gap of 48 years, a senior official said.
The decision was made at a meeting of the Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee (SJTMC), headed by Gajapati Maharaj Dibyasingha Deb, the titular king of Puri.
"It has been decided to start the inventory of the Ratna Bhandar between 12:12 pm and 1:45 pm on March 25," Arabinda Padhee, the chief administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), told reporters.
Padhee said the timing and date were decided based on the opinion of scholars and religious experts.
They found this time and day (Shukla Pakshya Saptami of the month of Chaitra) as most auspicious for beginning the inventory work of the Ratna Bhandar, the treasury where the Lord's ornaments and valuables are stored in two chambers called Bahar Bhandar (outer chamber) and Bhitar Bhandar (inner chamber).
The chief administrator said that the inventory will not be conducted on Saturdays, Sundays, and festival days as a large number of devotees throng the shrine.
"Priority will be given to the darshan of devotees," he said, adding that people can witness the deities when the inventory is going on inside the Ratna Bhandar.
He said that the ornaments used by deities daily will also be included in the exercise.
The entire process will be digitized, and an e-catalogue will be prepared for future reference.
The chief administrator said that the state government had earlier approved the SOP for undertaking the exercise, which was last held in 1978.
Padhee said that the inventory of the 'Bahar Ratna Bhandar' will be taken up first.
He said that the previous inventory had taken 72 days.
"We cannot now say how many days are required, but the High Court has directed the state government to complete the exercise within 90 days," he added.
The HC had issued the direction on January 27.
"We will inform the HC on the measures taken on the Ratna Bhandar inventory process. This is a very sensitive matter and needs to be handled with utmost care," he said.
To ensure accuracy and transparency, the inventory will be digitized through e-cataloguing, and a special monthly calendar will be prepared. Two dedicated teams – a supervisory team and a handling team – have been constituted to ensure smooth execution of the process, he said.
The supervisory team, to be chaired by the SJTA chief administrator, includes two members from the Ratna Bhandar supervision committee and one servitor member.
Similarly, the handling team will comprise one member of the SJTMC, Pattajoshi Mahapatra, Bhandar Mekap, Tadhaukarana, Deulakarana, a Shree Mandir Bania sevak, two goldsmiths, two gemologists, and one officer from the Reserve Bank of India, among others.
Padhee emphasised that there will be no valuation of the ornaments. The exercise aims to ensure documentation, transparency, and security, and to compare current records with the 1978 inventory.
The inner chamber was unlocked on July 14, 2024, after 46 years, for the inventory and repair of its structure.
"In order to maintain transparency and safety, the keys of the inner chamber will be deposited every day after inventory at the district treasury," Padhee said.
